


Almost Paradise

by myredturtle



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Amnesia, Canon Divergence - After Malec wedding, Established Relationship, F/M, Family Feels, Fix-It, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-01
Updated: 2020-08-02
Packaged: 2021-03-06 03:55:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 70,098
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25646923
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/myredturtle/pseuds/myredturtle
Summary: Clary Fray may have been stripped of her runes and her memories of the Shadow World, but the consequences of her brief sojourn amongst them would be felt for years to come.Even without the reckless redhead around to stir up trouble, Alec had plenty of work to occupy him. On top of his duties as Institute Head, Alec also fully intended to find a way to get Clary’s memories back.
Relationships: Luke Garroway/Maryse Lightwood, Magnus Bane/Alec Lightwood, Simon Lewis/Isabelle Lightwood
Comments: 22
Kudos: 80
Collections: The Quantum Bang





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Almost Paradise is a collaborative contribution to the 2019-2020 Quantum Bang. Claire Watson (myredturtle) wrote the story, and all of the amazing artwork was created by fashi0n.
> 
> Thank you to Alinora Malina for your beta work, superb as always! And thank you to Desertpoet and Saydria Wolfe for listening to the author's ramblings and providing alpha advice.
> 
> The Quantum Bang is run by Jilly James, and focuses on ‘fix-it’ themed fanfiction stories.

## 

## Chapter one

Alec frowned as he read the latest message from the Clave. He’d been married for just over a week, had taken only a single day off for his honeymoon, and already the Council was breathing down his neck.

He looked up as the door to his office opened, face breaking into an involuntary smile as Magnus entered holding an extremely picturesque looking picnic hamper in one hand.

“Alexander!” Magnus said cheerily, putting the hamper down on a chair and coming forward to kiss him with his usual enthusiasm. “I decided the weather today was perfect for eating outdoors. Care to join me? There’s a long-standing Mundane practice of Sunday family lunch that I think would be a good tradition to start.”

Alec made a face. “I’d love to, but I’ve got too much to do here.”

“Surely you could put some of this paperwork off for long enough to eat? A bit of rest will increase your productivity, you know.”

If it was just paperwork, Alec might have let himself be tempted. “I’ve got a video conference with the Council in fifteen minutes,” he said regretfully.

To say that Alec was busy would be an understatement.

In a relatively short amount of time, the Morgenstern/Fairchild family had upturned centuries of tradition and exposed seemingly solid alliances for the flimsy trumpery they really were, and while the Clave would no doubt like to react to that with their usual disdain for anyone that didn’t carry angel blood, Jonathon’s final raid on Institutes all over the world meant that they were critically shorthanded across the board.

The fallout from the last couple of months was going to take _years_ to fix. On the positive side, the upheaval had created space for changes that were long overdue. If Alec could just seize the moment and capitalise on it, the long-term benefits would probably even be worth it.

Unfortunately, in the absence of any of the actual firebrands, the Clave had begun making noises towards the idea that _he_ —and if not Alec personally then certainly the New York Institute under his leadership, which amounted to the same thing—should be held accountable for the responses of the Downworlder factions. The Clave really excelled at passing the buck.

Alec’s first Downworld Cabinet meeting since his marriage—only days after his return—had been an exercise in diplomacy and tact, two skills that Alec already needed to work harder at. As the highest ranked sympathetic Shadowhunter that the Downworld had easy access to, he was presented with various communications that the Downworld representatives wished to be passed on to the Clave.

The Fae were infuriated that an angel-blooded had murdered their queen. The Clave had initially tried to argue that Jonathon wasn’t one of theirs, that he’d been their enemy as well, but the Seelie representative responded by rattling off three historical precedents showcasing times when the entirety of the Seelie race had been penalised by the Clave for the actions of a rogue member.

Now, both sides were looking to Alec for solutions that would favour them.

Meanwhile, the Praetor Lupus representatives were making insistent inquiries about the experiments that Aldertree had been running. They were pushing hard for concessions, demanding that changes be made to the Accords to require the Clave to make their legal process open to scrutiny. After all, if ‘The Law is the Law’, and the Clave was adhering to that law, then there was nothing to hide, was there?

The Spiral Labyrinth had yet to make any demands, but Alec wasn’t naive enough to think that that meant they didn’t have any. Even if he had been inclined to think that, Magnus had quietly warned him that meetings were going on behind closed doors. Meetings that Magnus had been politely asked to excuse himself from, as he was considered to have a conflict of interest.

Which only left the vampires. Alec wasn’t even sure who the clan leader of _New York_ was right now, and none of the vampires he’d met had been willing to divulge the identities of individuals with a higher rank. The Clave had documentation on several people that they claimed were global vampiric leaders, but Alec had seen Clave files turn out to be wrong too many times to place all his faith on that.

Simon wasn’t much help. He’d always been on the outskirts of vampiric society, given his ties to the local Institute. He had mentioned to Izzy and Alec that the local vampires were treating him even more strangely than usual, but he’d been too worried about how to deal with Clary’s sudden memory loss to properly investigate what was going on there.

And hadn’t _that_ been a shock. Thanks to a concerted effort by their friends and family, Alec and Magnus had been kept unaware of that piece of news until after their short honeymoon.

Alec had been annoyed at first, because what if he and Magnus could have done something? But Magnus had encouraged him to see the delay as the gift it really was. If Clary had been telling the truth in her farewell letters—and Alec had no reason to suspect otherwise—then the only thing informing them earlier would have achieved would be cutting short their already limited time alone together.

And really, Alec wouldn’t trade their mini honeymoon for the world.

It might be only a week in the past, but it already seemed like a distant memory. Right now he had to deal with the Clave response to the report he’d sent them two days ago; in which he’d detailed the Downworld reactions to the recent Morgenstern Family rampage and given his recommendations. Recommendations the Clave were apparently _not_ happy with, recommendations they wanted to discuss with him.

Magnus didn’t let Alec’s refusal dampen his upbeat demeanour. “What about afterwards? Couldn’t you leave one of your siblings to hold down the fort for a mere hour?”

“An hour? Just one?” Alec raised his eyebrows. “It’s never just an hour, Magnus; you know how we get. And no, they can’t hold down the fort because they’re not here. I sent them both to the Seelie Realm to gather up the shards of Glorious. Hopefully the turmoil within the Seelie Court has kept the Fae from picking them up themselves. The last thing we need is _more_ people experimenting with heavenly fire.”

Magnus cocked his head to one side. “A compromise then, darling. I’ll leave _this_ , here,” he indicated the basket, “and take the opportunity to do a check-up on the wards, maybe tweak them a little. _You_ get as many of the urgent matters as possible taken care of, and when Izzy and Jace get back, you leave the Institute in their hands and join me for lunch.”

“They might not be back for hours yet,” Alec pointed out.

“In which case feel free to help yourself from the basket as and when you feel like it,” Magnus replied. “I’ll just drag you away for an early dinner.”

“You know how to drive a bargain, Mr Lightwood-Bane,” Alec capitulated. “You have a deal. Just… _please_ try not to create any havoc between now and then.”

Magnus gave him a highly unconvincing innocent look.

“I mean it.” Alec frowned half-heartedly. “The more work you give me, the less likely I’m going to be able to make it away at a reasonable time tonight.”

“You drive a hard bargain yourself, Mr Lightwood-Bane,” Magnus replied, pouting. “Very well. I promise I’ll behave myself while amongst all your delicate Shadowhunters. I’m sure you’ll be appropriately grateful later.”

Alec smirked, and kissed his husband quickly. “I always am. Now go, and I’ll see you later,” he promised, moving back behind his desk.

Magnus sighed. “Just so you know, being a kept husband isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.” He opened the door, turning at the last moment to flick his fingers in Alec’s direction. A wisp of blue mist danced over the intervening space, and Alec felt the ghostly impression of familiar lips on his cheek before Magnus closed the door gently behind him, no doubt intending to go and bother Underhill.

Alec’s smile lasted until he remembered what he’d been doing before Magnus arrived. With a sigh, he gathered what he needed in order to be ready for his ‘discussion’ with the Clave.

v^v^v^v

It went about as well as Alec had expected. The Clave was hoping to save as much face while ceding as little ground as possible and had—in their infinite wisdom—determined that Alec was their best chance at achieving this.

Alec had tried pointing out his obvious divided allegiances, only to be firmly told that as a Shadowhunter—and the leader of an Institute—he was expected to be loyal to the Clave first and foremost. They also made it clear that they fully expected him to leverage his marriage to Magnus—who, thanks to his recent actions while saving Alicante, was arguably considered the most powerful warlock in the world—in their favour.

They rang off before Alec could argue further, leaving him fuming, shoulders twitching irritably. How dare they demand such a thing of him? After everything that had happened, after Magnus had _saved their asses_ by holding the rift to Edom closed! After he had _willingly gone into exile_ there in order to achieve that! How _dare_ they ask that of Magnus!

He was peripherally aware that his fingertips were tingling slightly, but that in no way prepared Alec for the tablet he was holding to fizzle and spark and then catch fire in his hands. He dropped it onto his desk in surprise. The fire winked out, leaving a broken device and the smell of scorched electronics in the air.

Seconds later, Magnus burst into the room, his magic swirling around him, only to fade back to its usual levels almost immediately. “Alexander!” Magnus hurried towards him, looking concerned. “The wards showed an unregistered magic user casting magic in here.” His gaze dropped to the ruined tablet. “What happened?”

Alec looked at his hands. “I think _I_ did that.”

“What?”

“I was angry,” Alec explained. “The Clave, they…” he hesitated.

“The Clave were being their usual charming selves,” Magnus said with a wave of his hand. “Not unexpected, really. Don’t concern yourself that I will hold you responsible for their offensive machinations, dearest.”

Alec nodded, still staring at his hands. “I noticed my fingertips tingling slightly and then the tablet just…caught fire.”

“Just caught fire?” Magnus repeated, poking at the tablet with a frown. “How odd. Hmm. Tingly fingertips… Has anything like this ever happened to you before? When you were younger, perhaps?”

Alec shook his head. “No. The only time something like this happened was in Edom, when I realised that I couldn’t use my stele to track you.” He felt his face flush. “I got a little agitated and started a miniature wind-storm.”

Magnus looked intrigued. “You never told me about this, darling.”

Alec shrugged. “I didn’t think it mattered. We found you, Izzy killed Lilith, and then we were back home, none the worse for wear.”

Magnus frowned thoughtfully and undid his right shirt cuff before pulling up his sleeve. He inspected the site where Clary had drawn the rune that had connected them all together. The skin was smooth and blemish free, no sign that a rune had ever been drawn there. “It seems you’re still being affected by being joined to Lorenzo. I don’t recall actually seeing the rune on your skin…where did Clary draw it for you?”

Alec had already rolled up his sleeve. “Mine’s gone too. There isn’t even a scar left.”

“Is that usual?”

“No. It’s not usual at all.” Alec rolled his sleeve down again.

Magnus cocked his head to one side. “What exactly did Clary say about it?”

“She called it ‘Alliance,’” Alec answered. “She said it would bind us together, almost like a temporary parabatai rune; something that would allow us to share powers and immunities. And skills.”

Magnus slowly rolled his sleeve down and fastened his cuff. A spark of blue washed over the fabric, removing the wrinkles. “That seems odd…is that how a parabatai rune works?”

“Not really,” Alec said slowly. “Parabatai share strength, and we’re more aware of each other and can share emotions and impressions. You already know that we can use the bond to track each other, although not without cost.”

“So, Clary’s rune wasn’t much like a parabatai rune at all,” Magnus said with a sigh. “What were you _thinking_ , Alexander, to let her experiment on you like that? You’re usually much more level-headed.”

Alec raised his eyebrows. “Yes, well my fiancé isn’t _usually_ facing permanent exile in a demonic realm that I can’t get to, about to come under attack from an enraged Greater Demon and her demon horde,” he replied. “At that point I was desperate enough to be considering _vampirism_ as an option. Besides, I didn’t notice you objecting when she placed the rune on you.”

“There was no time,” Magnus replied. “Isabelle was on the brink of burning up, so _something_ had to be done. There’s no way I could let you lose her like that, Alec.” He hesitated. “Also, I rather trusted in Lorenzo’s instinct for self-preservation. I was certain that if he thought what we were doing was truly dangerous he wouldn’t have allowed it. I didn’t realise that you had all infected him with your _noble heroism_.”

Alec’s eyebrows remained up.

“Oh, very well,” Magnus groused. “I suppose it would be hypocritical of me to berate you. Still, it seems probable that this rune of hers might be responsible for your current predicament, if it can truly be called such.” He tapped at his lower lip with a manicured fingernail. Alec found himself concentrating more on the softness of those lips than the conversation they were having. “I wonder if this has any relation to what’s been happening with my magic…”

That caught Alec’s attention. “What’s been happening with your magic?”

Magnus shrugged. “Since we got back from Edom it’s been more…robust…than I’m used to. There have been a few fluctuations, mostly to do with output on spells that I’ve previously found reliable. You recall what happened on our honeymoon, I trust?”

Alec smiled as he recalled the ‘day’ they’d spent together immediately following their wedding.

It had seemed to get off to a slow start. Magnus had portaled them to the loft, given Alec a swift, toe-curling kiss, and then spent the next thirty minutes in his workshop carefully building a spell. He’d come out holding a dark blue sphere in his hands. A few muttered words and a wave of blue exploded outwards from Magnus’ hands, the sphere enlarging like a giant bubble that ended up visibly stuck to the exterior walls of the apartment.

Alec had been confused and slightly worried until Magnus informed him that everything on the inside of the bubble would experience elongated time over the next twenty hours, effectively extending their honeymoon. Magnus had estimated that the spell he cast would double the next twenty hours, making it seem like forty.

When the spell had yet to end sixty hours later, Magnus had started to look thoughtful, but insisted it was nothing to be concerned about. He’d only just got his magic back, after all, there were bound to be readjustment issues. Not that either of them was complaining, they had spent the entirety of their extended honeymoon immersing themselves in each other.

It was the first time since they’d met that they’d had more than an occasional night together. It was amazing to have the chance to enjoy each other without the world intruding. They had revelled in it. They could finally _talk_ about things, most notably how they’d each handled the most recent events. They renewed their promises to each other with words and actions.

It wasn’t all serious though. They took the opportunity for some extended sexual romps, and Alec learned things about himself—and what he liked in bed—that would have shocked him six months prior.

All too soon even their stretched-out day was over, and they had returned to their duties.

Alec still wasn’t familiar enough with the ebbs and flows of Magnus’ magic that he was able to tell what kind of fluctuations were within reasonable parameters and what was cause for further investigation. His smile faded as he considered the implications of what Magnus was saying.

Magnus must have decided he looked worried. “No, no, my dear, it’s nothing particularly concerning, considering the recent upheavals. There were bound to be side-effects after trading my magic away to Asmodeus and then having it returned; it was always something I was going to have to keep an eye on. That was one of the reasons I wanted to check the wards here. Not that they appear to need my supervision; I don’t think I’ve ever seen them stronger. They’re one of my masterpieces, you know. None of the other Institutes are warded even half as well.”

“I thought you were ‘checking the wards’ as a not-so-subtle ‘fuck you’ to Lorenzo,” Alec said, watching with amusement as Magnus’ nose tilted higher.

“I would be lying if I said that there wasn’t _some_ of that in there,” Magnus admitted. “But it wasn’t my primary motivator, no.”

Alec laughed. “Are you two ever going to be able to get along?”

Magnus grimaced slightly. “Oh, he’s not so bad, I suppose.”

“Regretting your refusal of his offer to give you back the High Warlock position?”

“No, not really.” Magnus sighed. “The manner and reasons for my demotion might have been more about politics than a reflection of my abilities, or of my day-to-day care for my people. But it was done in accordance to the rules laid down by our governing body, and therefore it should stand. It’s not up to me and Lorenzo to trade the position between ourselves like so much rice.” He smirked. “There are a number of people who voted for him that regret it now, of course. Lorenzo is not as…indulgent…as I am, and he’s very insistent on being given his due as the leader of the region. I’ve been approached by several of my former constituents about the likelihood of me throwing my hat into the ring again.”

Alec eyed his husband. “But you don’t plan to do that, do you?”

Magnus flicked his fingers dismissively. “No, darling. I don’t think I will. I was the High Warlock for decades, you know, and I immersed myself in that role perhaps more than was good for me. The distance has given me a little perspective, and I think it’s time to find something new.” His eyes danced mischievously. “In the meantime, Manhattan might be a good location to set up shop, don’t you think?”

“You mean like an actual shop?” Alec asked, frowning.

“Nothing so tedious,” Magnus replied. “No offense to Maryse, of course, who appears to be thriving in that environment. No, I mean letting it be known that I’m available to take on contracts. For potions and warding etc. The High Warlock of the area has a certain obligation to provide services at an affordable rate, you understand, but I shall be able to charge what I like.”

“Is this your way of warning me that the Institute is going to get an enormous bill shortly?” Alec could feel the corner of his mouth twitching.

Magnus leered playfully at him. “Don’t worry, darling. If you’re nice to me, I’ll let you offset the costs with a tit-for-tat arrangement.”

Alec heaved a mock sigh. “Well, if it’s for the good of the Institute…” he leaned in towards his husband’s inviting lips.

The door banged open. Given that generally only his siblings barged in without even a token knock, Alec didn’t let that stop him from thoroughly kissing his husband. His expectations proved correct when he heard Jace exclaim with disgust.

Alec made sure draw the kiss out for several moments more—it was no hardship—before lifting his head to greet his parabatai.

Jace had his arms folded across his chest. He so resembled an adorable disgruntled child that Alec had to work to keep his amusement from showing openly on his face.

“I thought that once you were married all this lovey-dovey stuff would stop,” Jace complained. “Isn’t all the passion supposed to die once you get a ring on it?”

“Not that I’ve noticed,” Alec replied, stepping back from Magnus and falling into his usual working stance of parade rest. He cocked his head to one side. “Maybe it depends on what kind of ring you’re talking about? Have you heard of a cock ring? They’re these—”

“I know what they are!” Jace exclaimed, looking horrified. “Stop! Please!”

Alec kept his expression bland. Magnus didn’t bother, smirking gleefully at his brother-in-law.

“I’m really starting to regret some of the lengths I used to go to when I teased you,” Jace said sourly. “Do you want to know how our mission went, or what?”

“Of course,” Alec agreed. He went to pick up his tablet, only to see the scorched and broken electronic mess sitting on his desk. “Damn. Forgot about that.”

Jace raised his eyebrows and shook his head. “I’m pretty sure I don’t want to know. Right, so the short version is that Izzy and I managed to pick up nearly a hundred shards. She’s locking them in one of the safes right now.”

“Was your presence questioned?” Alec asked.

“We were watched the whole time, but no-one approached. Izzy said that they were friendly, that we’d know if they weren’t.”

Magnus nodded. “Your sister is right. The Seelie Realm is extremely reactive to the moods of its denizens. Normally the Queen keeps close control over how much of that is visible—on display, so to speak—to outsiders, but…”

“Right,” Jace said. “No Queen, so if they hated our guts then—”

“You would have been dodging aggressive tree roots and branches, and you’d be sporting squirrel bites in some uncomfortable places.”

Jace looked at Alec. “Well, thanks for that, fearless leader.”

Alec shrugged. “If you want to change places and take over all the paperwork while I spend most of my day out in the field, then be my guest.”

Jace’s pout turned into alarm. “No, no. You’re doing a great job. Why don’t I just…” he gestured to the door. “I’ll find some swords to sharpen, or something. Okay?”

“Get your reports done!” Alec called after his parabatai as he hastened out the door. He sighed as the door slammed without any further acknowledgement.

“I see what you mean about his coping mechanism,” Magnus remarked. “If I didn’t know better, I would think it’s business as usual with him.”

“He’s always dealt with things this way. You’d hardly know by looking at him or talking to him that he’s not sleeping. Our training equipment is beginning to show signs of needing to be replaced again.”

“How long will he keep that up?”

“Until he breaks.” Alec sighed again. “That could happen any time now. It won’t be pretty, but at least then he’ll be ready to talk about it a little.”

Magnus reached up and smoothed out Alec’s brow with his fingers. “Since they’re back, are you ready to come and join me for lunch?”

Alec let Magnus’ touch settle the discomfort Jace’s distress had caused him. “Yes, let’s. I’m not going to get much done until I get a new tablet anyway, so just give me a moment to stop by security so I can let them know what I need, and we can go.”

v^v^v^v

Lunch was as delightful as Alec thought it would be, but the rest of the day did its best to dispel the lingering good humour that the interlude with his husband had brought him.

He had a meeting that afternoon with his senior staff, shift supervisors, and patrol leaders. The main topic under discussion was something that had been on Alec’s mind for the last week.

“We just don’t have the people to maintain the levels of watchfulness that are needed,” said Jeremy Ashheart, one of the older patrol leaders in the Institute. He’d transferred in under Aldertree’s command, and then stayed when the leadership had changed hands. Alec didn’t really know him all that well. “Our fighters are already logging overtime. If we continue to send them out without adequate rest, they’re going to end up dead, and then we’ll be in an even worse position.”

“No,” Alec said firmly. “Our people aren’t expendable. We need to find more people, quickly.”

“We’re already better staffed than most,” Underhill said. “There _are_ no more people.”

“There may not be more _Shadowhunters_ available,” Izzy mused. “But I don’t see why we can’t ask Downworlders to patrol with us. They live in this city as well. They’ve got as much stake in its safety as we do.”

“We can’t depend on Downworlders!” Ashheart said with a sneer. The only person who appeared to agree with him was Teresa Penmount, a newly minted patrol leader who had been a member of the New York Institute for over three years. She was a competent fighter and a hard worker but had frequently agreed with Raj whenever he and Alec had butted heads. Alec had been surprised that she hadn’t taken any of the earlier opportunities to transfer out.

“Why not?” Alec said, running over the pro’s and con’s in his mind. “Izzy’s right. If we don’t have the personnel, then why can’t we appeal to the local Downworld leadership to bolster our numbers?”

“What? You mean go _begging_ to the Downworld?” Penmount looked truly horrified. “I would rather die!”

“That might be sooner rather than later, if we don’t pad out our numbers,” Alec replied, eyebrows raised. “We don’t have to _beg_. It’s easy enough to offer them the chance to be a part of the protection of the city as part of the concessions they’re wanting. We’ll need to set up joint training, of course, and I’m not going to send any of my Shadowhunters out with Downworlders until I’m _completely_ sure they’re not going to jeopardise the work that’s already been achieved with the Cabinet meetings.”

Izzy beamed at him from across the table.

“The Clave will never allow it,” Penmount insisted. Ashheart nodded in support.

“The Clave doesn’t need to be asked,” Underhill said unexpectedly, turning to face her. “The mandate of the Institute Leadership is clearly established. The Institute Head—or Heads—are to use all tools at their disposal in order to control demonic activity in their allocated region. The only avenues the Clave has for objection are if current laws are being broken, and I can’t think of a single law that says that an Institute leader can’t deputise Downworlders.”

Penmount scoffed. “That’s because the whole idea is ludicrous!”

Alec narrowed his eyes at her. “I’ve made my decision,” he said. “Underhill, I want you to find four volunteers to work with you to put together an offer I can present to the next cabinet meeting. No one who is already doing three or more jobs.” He ignored Izzy’s pout with the skill born of a lot of practice.

Underhill agreed, making a note on his tablet, and Alec moved to the next item on the agenda.

v^v^v^v

As soon as the meeting was over, Alec had a quick word with Underhill about doing some discreet surveillance on Penmount and Ashheart. While he didn’t mind dissenting opinions, bigotry was another matter. If they were going to be making waves for the policies he wanted to implement, he intended to know who they were talking to and what they were saying. There was no place in his Institute for prejudice.

When he got home that night, he sounded Magnus out on Izzy’s idea. As he expected Magnus was enthusiastically in favour.

“It might be the very thing we need, darling,” he said. “I spent the afternoon catching up with some old friends, and they had some rather disturbing rumours to relate.”

“What now?” Alec asked wearily.

“It seems that with Lilith’s death, Asmodeus’ disappearance, and Edom’s destruction, a bit of a power vacuum has opened up in the demon world,” Magnus said apologetically. “The Greater Demons are all hoping to add to their power base, and then there are any number of rather ambitious Lower Demons who are feeling that the time is ripe for a bit of an uprising, and that they are naturally the best suited for advancement.”

“So, there’s a demonic war brewing,” Alec summarised. “You expect it to spill over here?”

“On the whole, probably not,” Magnus answered. “My biggest concern is about what will happen _after_ it’s all resolved. The way I see it, _someone_ is going to come out at the top of the heap. That someone is going to have a lot of strong demon underlings that suddenly have nothing to do. When that happens, I think it would be fair to expect renewed activity.”

“You think that they’ll bring their war to us,” Alec finished. “Right at a time when the Shadowhunter numbers have been reduced catastrophically.”

“You see why I thought your Downworlder Deputy idea might be just the thing?”

“Wait. You said ‘Asmodeus’ disappearance.’ You mean he isn’t dead? Where is he then? When you said he would never come between us again, I sort of assumed…”

Magnus looked uncomfortable. “He’s in limbo. I trussed him up with my magic, opened a portal, knocked him out, and sent him through.”

Alec blinked. “It was that easy? Why didn’t we just do that with Lilith?”

“I confess it didn’t occur to me,” Magnus admitted. “Besides, we don’t know much about limbo. Most of what we ‘know’ is theoretical only. We’ve observed that those who go through a portal unconscious never emerge, and limbo is the name we’ve given the place where we imagine they’ve gone.”

Alec frowned. “So, for all we know they’re ending up forward or back in time, or just in some other dimension.”

“Exactly. Or they may be dead. Since no one’s ever come back, we’ve gone with the _assumption_ of their death, but since there are no guarantees…”

“It’s not really a good idea to just use portals as a dumping ground for inconvenient enemies,” Alec finished.

“Well, just imagine it, darling. What if you manage to send all your worst enemies to a place where they’re all perfectly fine, and they just stay there making evil plots against you, only to come back when you least expect it? Better to just get rid of your enemies the old-fashioned way.”

“By using experimental runes to change our very nature, busting into demonic realms, destroying our enemies with heavenly fire that almost kills us too, before burning the place to the ground on our way out?”

“It _was_ a rather eventful afternoon, wasn’t it?”

v^v^v^v

The next morning Alec awoke a bit out of sorts. His skin felt tight, stretched too thin over his bones. It wasn’t until he was brushing his teeth that he realised that the origin of that feeling was the air. It felt un-naturally heavy, almost full to bursting with _something_. It was unnerving. At first he thought he might be imagining it, but Magnus seemed disgruntled as well.

“What do you think it could be?” Alec asked, leaning down to tie his shoes in readiness for his morning jog to the Institute.

“I don’t know, and I don’t like it,” Magnus replied, watching from his spot curled in the weak November sun and absently rubbing at his shoulders. “Are you sure you don’t want me to make you a portal?”

“I’m sure,” Alec said, coming over to give him a kiss goodbye. “I’ll feel better after a run. Remember that Mom, Izzy, and Jace are coming over for dinner tonight. Will I see you at lunch?”

“If you think you can make time for me in your busy schedule?”

“Count on it,” Alec promised. He kissed Magnus again for good measure before heading out.

The route between Magnus’ apartment and the Institute was a familiar one now, and Alec lost himself in the rhythm of his feet and his breath and the feel of his blood pumping through his body.

Despite all the death and destruction and the upheaval of the last few months, Alec was happier than he’d ever been before. He was living the kind of life that he’d always secretly wanted, but never dreamed that he’d get the opportunity to have.

He was leading the New York Institute, working with Jace and Izzy every day to make the lives of Shadowhunters, Downworlders, and Mundanes easier and safer. Then, every night he went home to Magnus—his smoking hot husband who was like all his teenage fantasies come to life—who loved Alec so much he traded away _his magic_ for Alec’s parabatai, because he knew that losing Jace would have crippled Alec and Magnus would rather cripple himself than let that happen.

Naturally, Alec had since informed his husband that he was never to do anything like that ever again. Magnus had skilfully evaded the requested promise, but with Asmodeus gone it was unlikely to ever be a thing again anyway. And Alec was going to take much better care of all the people in his life, so hopefully it wouldn’t be an issue.

Of course, with Clary losing her memories and resuming her Mundane life, everything had calmed down considerably. How could one small woman, not even out of her teens yet, cause so much chaos? It was baffling.

Alec slowed down as he approached the small café that Izzy liked. Life wasn’t so busy that he couldn’t stop and pick his siblings up something nice to brighten their day, and Izzy had been working extra-hard lately. She could do with a bit of spoiling.

Armed with coffee for Izzy and chocolate pastries for Jace; Alec stopped by the training room first, where Jace was drilling some of the newer Shadowhunters; and then moved onto the armoury, where Izzy was working on the schematics for a thinner and lighter seraph blade.

“Thank you, big brother!” Izzy beamed at him, barely letting him put his offering down before throwing her arms around him.

“Hey, Izzy,” Alec said, hugging her back. “Anything interesting happen overnight?”

Izzy released him and picked up her coffee, inhaling the aroma with her eyes closed. “Not unless you count the messy implosion of the Kingsmill, Rosewain, and Makepeace love triangle.”

Alec made a face. “No, I really don’t. In fact I’m quite glad I missed it. Was it everything you hoped it would be?”

Izzy made a so-so motion with the hand not holding her coffee. “There wasn’t any throwing or hitting and minimum shouting, but lots of crying. I’ll say maybe a six out of ten? There was a _lot_ of crying. You would have been making ick-face. Yes. Like that one.”

“If there had been throwing or hitting there would have also been a reprimand,” Alec pointed out.

“You just don’t understand drama.”

Alec rolled his eyes. “Izzy, I grew up with you and Jace. I’m married to Magnus. Believe me, I understand drama just fine. I just don’t think the workplace is the correct place for it. Also, _no_ relationship drama is a good enough reason to physically assault your co-workers.”

Izzy blew a raspberry at him. “Oh, go be sensible and responsible somewhere else.”

Alec picked up his coffee. “I’ll see you at dinner tonight?”

“Wouldn’t miss it.”

v^v^v^v

Izzy brought Simon with her to dinner, and Maryse brought Luke. Their presence turned out to be that extra bit needed to push Jace over the edge from denial into anger. He managed to hold onto it for an hour, quite obviously letting it seethe and simmer until it exploded over dessert.

“What the hell?” Jace stared furiously at the beautifully presented tiramisu that Magnus had just placed in front of him. “What kind of stupid plan was that, anyway? How can taking Clary’s memories away from her teach her anything? She doesn’t remember! She doesn’t remember any of us, not even Simon! Not even _Luke_! This is utter _bullshit_!” He shoved the plate away.

“I can assure it’s not bullshit, Jace,” Maryse said calmly, taking another bite. “It’s tiramisu and quite delicious, in fact. And that was rude.”

Face like a thundercloud, Jace brought the plate back in front of him and picked up his fork, stabbing at the dessert as if he thought it was going to try and get away from him.

Simon and Luke sat there looking uncomfortable, but Izzy and Magnus continued their conversation about belt buckles as if nothing had happened. Alec got up and poured Jace a glass of Magnus’ best brandy. He knew Magnus wouldn’t mind. Magnus didn’t even like brandy, but it had been a gift from Ragnor—who _did_ like brandy, and who had apparently made a habit of gifting it to Magnus so that he’d always have something he liked available—and he couldn’t bring himself to throw it out.

Jace stared at it for a moment, before necking it. Alec raised a brow at Magnus, and at his slight nod of approval poured Jace another one. It wasn’t like Jace had never crashed in the spare room before, after all.

Half an hour later, Simon and Jace were sitting together out on the balcony, having a long and only slightly weepy angst session about the unfairness of the world, the angels, and anything else that conspired to keep Clary away from them. The rest of them had gathered in the lounge, except for Luke, who was hovering halfway between the two groups looking like he couldn’t make up his mind if he should join Jace and Simon outside or stay inside with Maryse, Magnus, Izzy, and Alec.

“Did you have to get your brother drunk?” Maryse asked Alec with fond exasperation. “He’s going to be a nightmare to deal with tomorrow, you know.”

Alec shrugged. “It’ll be better for him to get the worst of it over and done with here, where no-one will blame him for it. I think that after everything he’s entitled to be difficult for a few days or so.” He shifted uncomfortably at the proud look Maryse was giving him. He still wasn’t used to receiving her open approval.

“It’s like a part of me is _missing_ ,” Jace’s intense voice carried in through the open doors.

“I keep thinking, ‘I’ll have to tell Clary about this later,’” Simon was starting to sound more maudlin than angry. “And then I remember, and it’s like the worst thing ever.”

Maryse got to her feet. “I can’t listen to this, or I’ll end up out there crying with them. I’m going to poke around in the kitchen. Anyone want a hot chocolate?” Magnus opened his mouth, probably to offer to conjure as many as were required but closed it again when Maryse shook her head at him. “Just let me have fun in your kitchen, Magnus.”

“Yes, Maryse,” Magnus agreed with a put-upon smile.

If Alec hadn’t been expecting it, he might have missed the way Magnus’ fingers flicked the moment Maryse’s back was turned.

“Do we even have chocolate in there?” he asked knowingly.

Magnus gave him a smug smile that was just begging to be kissed off his face. “We do now.”

Dragging his eyes away from his husband, Alec refocused and turned to Izzy. “So, while we’re on the subject…how are you holding up?”

Izzy gave him a look. “I’m fine. Why wouldn’t I be?”

“I thought you and Clary had agreed to be parabatai,” Alec said slowly.

Izzy’s eyes flashed. She angled her body so that Luke, Simon, and Jace wouldn’t overhear her response unless they were trying to and dropped her voice to just above a whisper. “Yes, we did. But her letter to me made it abundantly clear that she didn’t even consider consulting me—or even warning me, for that matter—before making _another_ decision that would change all of our lives.”

Alec winced. Izzy would not have taken that well. She hated being kept in the dark and having choices made for her, a lesson that he’d finally learned in his early teens. Izzy could take care of herself, and while she welcomed his care and affection, she put her foot down when he tried to protect her.

Magnus twirled little wisps of dancing blue magic around his fingers like a child playing with string. “Ah yes. That Fairchild habit of charging off to do what they think is right without fully considering the consequences. Her mother was the same, you know, in her youth. It took motherhood—and living in constant fear for her daughter’s life—to temper that trait, and even then it still popped up here and there. Jocelyn’s decisions around the Mortal Instruments, for instance. She was so certain that only _she_ knew the way forward, that she knew what was best for everyone.” He shook his head fondly, smile turning sly. “Not an unusual state of mind for Nephilim, I’ve come to realise.”

“Izzy, you knew that Clary was like that,” Alec pointed out, ignoring his husband’s last jab in his direction. “She’s been running off and causing chaos wherever she goes since we met her.”

Izzy shrugged, eyes still flinty. “What I’ll accept from someone I just met, and what I’ll accept from my parabatai are different, Alec.” Her gaze softened. “I’m angry with her right now. I want to have it out with her, but I can’t, her choices made that impossible. And I’m angry about that too.”

Magnus nodded sympathetically. “We know that she’s safe, at least.”

“Exactly. And who knows how long this ‘punishment’ from the angels will last? I miss her, of course I do. But right now I’m not particularly broken up about it.”

Alec glanced outside. Luke had finally joined Jace and Simon, and although he wasn’t weeping openly, he did wipe his eyes on the back of his hand at fairly regular intervals.

Alec turned back to his sister. “So, how are the new blade designs coming along?”

Izzy’s eyes lit up in excitement. “I’ve been in contact with Sister Asenath. She heard about how I re-forged Glorious, and wanted to talk about the method I used, and the results. I told her my ideas on how to streamline an adamas blade so that it can be worn a bit like my bracelet, and she’s going to get back to me. She said that I might have what it takes to be an Iron Sister after all!”

“That’s incredible, Izzy!” Alec said, trying to feel as enthusiastic about it as his sister was. It wasn’t that he didn’t want her to receive the honour of being admitted to one of the two most exclusive groups the Nephilim had, he just didn’t want to lose her. The Iron Sisters lived secluded and isolated, and they didn’t exactly visit with family. He wasn’t ready for Izzy to be gone from his life.

Izzy must have read what he was thinking from the expression on his face, because she laughed at him. “Don’t worry, big brother. I won’t be joining them anytime soon.” She looked over her shoulder at the group on the balcony. “I’m not ready to leave my family and friends behind just yet.” She made a face. “Just when I’ve finally got _you_ squared away with someone who will take proper care of you, Jace has to turn into a goobering mess.”

“I can take care of myself!” Alec objected.

Izzy gave him a pitying look. “Of course you can’t. I love you, big brother, but no, you cannot take care of yourself. You’re always far too busy taking care of everyone else to even spare yourself a thought.”

Magnus was nodding. When Alec glared at him, he just shrugged. “There’s no arguing with right, Alexander dearest. It’s no matter, I enjoy taking care of you. But then you take good care of me too, so it works out equally.”

Maryse walked in, carrying a tray of steaming mugs. Alec took the one that was offered to him, inhaling the familiar sweet aroma. It brought back memories of his early childhood, when Maryse would sometimes read to him and Izzy at night while they drank her special hot chocolate. From the look on Izzy’s face, she was remembering the same thing.

“Thanks, Mom,” Alec and Izzy chorused.

Maryse squared her shoulders and took her tray out onto the deck.

“She’s still allergic to strong emotion then,” Izzy said quietly.

“She’s trying,” Alec defended her. “Six months ago, she would have handed over the tray and told you to take it out to them.”

“Six months ago she would have told Jace to stop wasting time, and to channel his emotions into training,” Izzy responded with a trace of bitterness. She sighed, staring into her cup and stirring with the stick of cinnamon poking out. “I’m not trying to attack her, Alec. I just sometimes wonder when this new and improved Mom is going to change back into the one I grew up with, that’s all.”

“Hopefully never,” Maryse said, stepping back inside with an empty tray. “Luke has strict instructions to give me a wake-up call if I seem to be backsliding.” She put the tray down on the coffee table and went to sit beside Izzy, although the tension in her body betrayed her unease. “I know I can never make up for those years when I never put you first, or even second. I’m grateful that you’re willing to give me another chance, that I can still be a part of your lives.”

Maryse’s smile was tremulous, but looked more real than most of what Alec had seen from her growing up. “Almost despite my best efforts, my children are the most loving, beautiful, talented, and smart Shadowhunters I have ever known. I am so proud of you, every day, and just when I think I couldn’t love you more, I find that I can.”

“Thank you, Mom. I love you too.” Izzy and Maryse both had tears in their eyes now.

Alec’s eyes were tingling a bit too. He cleared his throat. “So, did you tell Sister Asenath that you’re holding onto the shards of Glorious?”

Izzy blinked her eyes rapidly, leaning into her mother slightly. “No. I thought I should discuss it with the Head of the Institute first. He’s been a little busy, what with his revolutionary decision to invite the Downworld Cabinet to volunteer their members to join us on patrol.”

“It was your idea,” Alec pointed out.

“Yes, but you’re the one who’s going to be on the end of any Clave fallout,” Izzy replied.

“What’s this?” Maryse asked.

Alec explained Izzy’s idea, and his strategy on how to put it into action.

Maryse looked surprised at first, but as Alec outlined the training regime and the teamwork exercises they were planning, a beaming smile filled her face. “You’re _doing_ it, Alec,” she said when he paused, uncertain if he should continue. “I told you that your generation would have to be smarter about how you changed the Clave. You and Izzy, and Jace too, of course, you’re _doing_ it. My babies are changing the world!”

v^v^v^v

The next morning, Alec woke Jace with a wet flannel to the face. “Come on, get up.”

“It’s not time yet,” Jace mumbled, opening one bleary, bloodshot eye.

“You’ll feel better after a run,” Alec promised, handing Jace his freshly laundered clothes. “We leave in fifteen minutes.”

Jace sat up. “Can’t your Warlock husband just make us a portal?”

Alec raised his eyebrows. “I’m sure he would if I asked him to, but I won’t. Magnus isn’t here to be a substitute taxi service. Now get up and get dressed.”

Out in the kitchen, Magnus leaned against the bench and absently rubbed his left shoulder with his right hand while he watched the kettle heating. He looked up when Alec came in. “Will he live?”

Alec snorted. “He’ll be fine once he gets up and moving. He’s on early patrol or I probably would have let him sleep in. Is your shoulder hurting you?”

“No, they both just feel a little odd,” Magnus said, leaning away from the bench and into Alec. “I must have used one of the muscles in a way it’s not used to being used, is all.”

Alec gave him a lingering kiss. “Maybe tonight we can get out those oils of yours, and I can give you a rub down. Were you—”

He stopped as the air around them grew heavy again, the way it had the morning before. “What—?”

Magnus straightened up instantly. Even while wearing his gold silken dressing-gown, he suddenly looked dangerous. His narrowed gaze went unerringly to the living room.

Alec pulled out his bow and followed his husband. In the centre of the room the air was a pulsing, seething, visible mass. It looked like something was trying to get out. Magnus raised his hands just as Alec nocked an arrow. From behind him Alec could feel Jace enter, ready to help deal with whatever was happening.

The air pulsed faster, and then seemed to split open. On the other side of the tear in reality, was an inky, ominous darkness. To Alec’s great surprise, Asmodeus came tumbling out.


	2. Chapter 2

## Chapter two

Asmodeus’ unconscious body was quickly followed by another—although this person was female, and a stranger—and then another. After a moment of stillness, Magnus snapped out of his initial shock. He immediately began using his magic to drag the new arrivals away from the strange portal, which continued to eject bodies at a rate of one every ten seconds or so.

Alec put his bow away and hurried to help him. Not that there was much he could do, they didn’t have vast expanses of space available. They ended up just laying the people side-by-side wherever they could be squeezed in.

Finally, they stopped coming. The strange portal pulsed once more, and then disappeared, taking with it the heavy feeling that had been saturating the air.

Magnus snapped his fingers. In a blink, his dressing-gown was gone, and he was now dressed in his impressive, ‘I’m a High Warlock and can thrash you with my pinkie’ best.

“What in the angel’s name…” Jace croaked, not looking nearly as well put together.

Magnus stared at Asmodeus’ unconscious form. “I suppose it was wrong to assume that he would never bother me again,” he muttered. He twisted his fingers; golden circlets of magic appeared around the wrists and necks of all the newcomers, before sinking into their skin, fading from view. “Well, that should take care of that. For a while, at least.”

“I recognise Asmodeus, of course,” Alec said, coming to stand beside his husband. “None of the rest of these people look familiar, though. Do you know any of them?”

“About half of them look like warlocks I once knew,” Magnus said. Blue wisps of his magic spread out from his hands, dipping and sliding around the newcomers before returning to him.

“‘Look like?’” Jace said, coming to stand on Alec’s other side, seraph blade still at the ready. “You think they’re fakes?”

“Warlocks have a general sense for each other’s power,” Magnus said, pursing his lips and cocking his head to one side. “I’m not getting anything from these people.”

Alec blinked. “What about…” He gestured to where Asmodeus—or someone, something, that looked exactly like Asmodeus—was lying.

Magnus shook his head. “As far as I can tell after a cursory examination, they’re just ordinary people.”

Jace put his blade away. “Mundanes?”

“As far as I can tell,” Magnus repeated. “My magic is better suited for battle and warding than diagnostics, though, so it might be a good idea to see what Catarina thinks.”

Alec nodded. “I really have to get to the Institute,” he said, wishing he could just stay here and help Magnus deal with whatever this turned out to be. “Jace, you stay here as my representative. Magnus, feel free to let Catarina know that Madzie is welcome to hang out with me for the morning. She might prefer to keep her away from this until we know what’s going on. Oh, and Magnus, would you mind terribly—”

“Opening a portal for you?” Magnus finished. “Not at all, darling.” He leaned up for a kiss and then used a familiar gesture to open a portal. “I’ll pass your message on to Catarina.”

Alec kissed his husband, exchanged nods with Jace, and hurried through the portal. Looked like he had another busy day ahead.

v^v^v^v

Alec notified Underhill that Jace was dealing with a situation and probably wouldn’t be available for patrol and told Izzy what was going on. He then did some quick juggling of his calendar so that if Catarina took him up on his offer, he’d be able to include Madzie.

Sure enough, five minutes later Catarina arrived at the Institute doors with Madzie in tow. “Thank you for this, Alec,” she said gratefully.

“It’s no trouble,” Alec replied. “Besides, I love being able to spend time with my favourite sorceress.”

“Alec!” Madzie greeted him cheerfully. She lifted her arms up in invitation.

Alec picked her up. “You know, you’re getting too big to be picked up like this. Lucky I’m strong, right? Well then, Catarina, we’ll have to leave you now. I have it on good authority that Izzy is keeping candy stashed in her office where she thinks I can’t find it. Now that I’ve obtained my super-candy-sniffer, I have somewhere I need to be.”

Madzie started giggling. She waved cheerily at Catarina. “Look how high I am!”

“Be good,” Catarina replied, grabbing Madzie’s hand and giving it a quick kiss. “I’ll be back in a few hours, okay?”

“Bye!” Madzie said, not looking worried in the slightest. “What kind of candy, Alec?”

“I guess we’ll have to find out.”

“Do you think Magnus will let me play in his garden?” Madzie asked as they headed out into the corridor.

Alec didn’t really consider the planters scattered around their balcony to be much of a garden. Still, he was familiar with Madzie’s skill at using her imagination to fuel her magic. Who knows what they looked like to a young magic-user of her potential? “When was the last time Magnus said no to you?”

Madzie leaned into Alec confidingly. “Magnus gives me flowers sometimes.”

“Of course he does,” Alec murmured, his heart swelling with affection. He pushed open the door to Izzy’s oft-neglected office. “Alright, Madzie. Time to get to work!”

v^v^v^v

Alec had already planned to do an Institute-wide surprise inspection later in the week. Still, with Madzie in tow, it was easier to get it done right then. It didn’t really matter to everyone else anyway, because when Alec performed a surprise inspection, it really _was_ a surprise. Not even Izzy and Jace got a heads-up.

He was pleased with the results. Aside from a couple of small matters—two or three people who were behind on their required sparring hours, and one who was on duty without the correct equipment—everything was running smoothly. Izzy came and stole Madzie from him just as he was finishing up, which gave him time to get the report written up and logged with the Clave. Then he sent an Institute-wide email letting everyone know that they were all doing a great job.

Next was a quick read-through of the previous day’s action reports. This wasn’t technically his duty, but Alec liked to keep his eye on the source documents so he could spot any worrying trends. It also gave him an insight into the people writing them. Today there were two that were a little too brief for his liking. Those were put aside to be handed back for further clarification.

Once that was done, Paul Alatini, the Shadowhunter currently standing in as Alec’s secretary, would summarise them into the daily report that needed to be signed off on.

Various other small matters needed his attention, but nothing lengthy or arduous. Alec finished up his daily tasks and considered tackling the dwindling inventory backlog. His concentration wasn’t at its best, so he decided to go looking for Izzy and Madzie.

They were in the cafeteria, coloured pencils in hand and heads bent over a drawing. Half-finished plates with the kitchen’s version of macaroni cheese were abandoned next to them.

When he got closer, Alec could see that it was a drawing of him and Magnus, going by the one figure’s spiky hair and the way the other one was carrying a bow. They appeared to be at a party, and there were hearts liberally sprinkled around.

“Is that our wedding?” Alec asked with a smile.

Madzie nodded and kept drawing. She’d picked up a yellow pencil and was using it to outline the figure with the fangs. “There were a lot of pretty clothes there,” she said solemnly.

Izzy caught his eye. “Have you heard from Jace yet?”

“No, but it’s only been a couple of hours. I figure no news is good news. They’ll let us know if they need us.”

She smiled knowingly. “Not knowing is driving you insane, isn’t it? Want to lay a bet on who can last the longest without checking on them?”

Alec scoffed. “Right, like you’re any better. I’m pretty sure I can hold out longer than you can.”

“Izzy already called Jace,” Madzie volunteered. “He said that Cat and Magnus think it might be some kind of knees-hair.”

Izzy gave Madzie a betrayed look. “Amnesia,” she clarified, her tone daring Alec to comment.

Alec figured he didn’t actually _need_ to say anything. “So, they really are who they look like then?”

“Apparently.”

Alec wondered what that meant for Asmodeus, given that Edom had been destroyed. “I was wondering if you two wanted to stop by that café with the big blue sign for lunch,” he offered, putting the matter of the strange arrivals to the back of his mind. “If you’ve already eaten then I suppose I’ll have to go by myself.”

“No!” Madzie exclaimed, jumping to her feet and putting down the pencil. “I didn’t eat hardly anything, Alec. I can go with you!”

Izzy nodded seriously. “She’s right, big brother. We mostly picked through the macaroni for the bacon bits; it’s almost like we haven’t eaten at all.”

“You shouldn’t be supporting bad habits,” Alec scolded, but couldn’t keep the smile from his face. “Come on then. If we get there early enough, they’ll still have that caramel slice that Magnus loves. We can buy some and bring it to him later.”

v^v^v^v

They ordered and found a table big enough for the three of them. Alec took the opportunity to ask Izzy if she was managing her workload comfortably. It was something that had been concerning him slightly. As formidable as she was, he didn’t want to see her take on too much and then burn herself out by trying to live up to everyone’s expectations.

She laughed at him. “One day you’ll realise that I’m all grown up, Alec,” she said, rolling her eyes in fond exasperation. “I promise that I’m fine. I would have thought you’d be pleased, since, if I’m keeping busy, then I’m not getting into trouble all over the place.”

Alec shook his head. “I’m just worried that you might be wearing yourself too thin.”

Izzy tossed her head. “I’ve never felt better,” she assured him. “As soon as I start feeling overwhelmed, I promise you’ll be the first to know.”

Their food arrived, and not wanting to push it, Alec reluctantly dropped the subject.

They were nearly finished eating when Jace called with an update. Alec left Izzy and Madzie at the table and stepped outside to hear it.

“None of them remembers a thing, so we spent most of the morning trying out various methods of identification,” Jace reported, sounding weary. “The majority of them seem to be warlocks. Between them, Magnus and Catarina were able to put names to about fifteen, most being warlocks they had known who had disappeared mysteriously. One was a werewolf that Catarina had once treated in _Amsterdam_.

“Magnus made a few calls—did you know that other dimensions can get cell service?—and the grumpiest warlock I’ve ever met arrived from the Spiral Labyrinth and identified more. There are currently about twenty that we have no idea about, Magnus is worried that we’ll never know who they are. And then…” Jace dropped his voice. “Hey, Alec…”

“What?”

“Mom came by. Did you know that she and Magnus have made plans to regularly get coffee together?”

“Of _course_ I know,” Alec replied, rolling his eyes. “What possible reason would _either_ of them have to keep it secret from me? Every Tuesday and Thursday, provided no earth-shaking emergencies come up.”

“Well, excuse me for being surprised!” Jace’s voice dropped even further to a whisper. “I mean it’s one thing to know that she accepts Magnus as your husband, you know? To keep you happy? But she actually gets on _well_ with him, Alec!”

Alec sighed. “Is there a point to this, Jace?”

Jace cleared his throat, his voice returning to normal. “Mom offered to leave when she saw how busy we were, but Magnus asked for her help. Alec…some of these people are Shadowhunters.”

Alec’s whole body came to attention. “I didn’t see any runes.” Not that he had been looking for them, exactly, but runes were generally pretty hard to miss unless someone was hiding them on purpose.

“Maybe I should have said that they _were_ Shadowhunters. I had one of them hold my witchlight, and it didn’t activate. Whatever happened to them, they’re not Shadowhunters anymore.”

Alec’s thoughts were racing. This made the whole situation officially Clave business. “How sure is Mom that they’re the people that she thinks they are? Could she be mistaken?”

“If _you_ want to suggest to our mother that her memory is faulty, then go right ahead,” Jace said, voice dry. “I’m not going to be your go-between, parabatai or not.”

“I don’t know what exactly you think she would do to you.”

“I don’t _know_ what she’d do to me, and I have no intention of finding out.”

“The best male Shadowhunter of our generation is afraid of an unarmed, exiled, middle-aged woman?”

Jace snorted. “Okay, I _dare_ you to call Maryse Lightwood that to her face.”

Alec decided not to respond to that one. “We should look through the Clave files to see if we can find identities for the rest. If they’re Downworlders, then they might be listed in the database.”

“We can try, I suppose,” Jace said doubtfully. “Magnus said that one of the warlocks he recognised, Kalmin, disappeared sometime between WWI and WWII. Does the Clave database even go back that far?”

“There’s only one way to find out. Why couldn’t this have happened when we were better staffed?”

Jace chuckled. “Right, because emergencies should run to a schedule.”

“It would be nice. Although I suppose that means we have space in the Institute for some of these unidentified people.”

“Alec, for all intents and purposes these are amnesiac Mundanes,” Jace reminded him. “They don’t have the sight. Cat said there was no guarantee that any of them would ever regain their memories or their abilities. And to be frank, I think that might be for the best.”

“I get what you’re saying,” Alec sighed, running a hand through his hair. “We have to find somewhere to put them, though. They can’t stay with Magnus and me indefinitely. Even Magnus might find stretching the apartment to accommodate so many people is a bit on the challenging side.”

“Relax, the Spiral Labyrinth has offered their assistance. Ayyash is going to start portaling them out in the next half hour.”

Alec groaned. “You couldn’t have mentioned that a little earlier in the conversation?”

“I was getting there!” Jace objected. “You derailed me. Anyway, Cat said to tell you that she’s finished for the moment. You can bring Madzie back, if you like.”

“We’ll be there soon.”

Alec disconnected and turned around to go inside, only to see Izzy and Madzie walking out the door, hand in hand. When she heard that Alec was taking Madzie back to Catarina, Izzy decided that she was coming too.

“I’m not on patrol until late,” she said. “Besides, I wanted to see Magnus about something anyway.”

Alec looked at her suspiciously, remembering a conversation he’d overheard a few days prior. “That ‘something’ wouldn’t happen to be my birthday, would it?” Izzy’s denial might have been believable if he didn’t know her so well. He shook his head. “Izzy, it’s not until January! Just, no surprise party, okay? No strippers or exploding cakes or anything like that. I’m happiest just having a relaxing time with the people I love.”

Izzy sighed. “I sometimes wonder how we can be related. I love you, big brother, but you’re so _boring_.”

“Alec is _not_ boring,” Madzie objected, frowning up at Izzy. “He’s _tall_.”

“See, Izzy?” Alec said smugly. “Hey, Madzie, want to ride on my shoulders?”

Madzie shrieked with excitement. “Yes, please!”

Izzy shook her head with a smile. “Talk about biased.”

v^v^v^v

At some point in the proceedings, Magnus must have called Lorenzo Rey, which made sense. Lorenzo was the High Warlock of Brooklyn, after all, and this matter fell well within his purview. Alec could only imagine the drama that would have resulted if Magnus _hadn’t_ called him in. Luckily, while the two warlocks might never be besties, they had learned to work with each other, even if it was grudging.

When Alec arrived, Lorenzo and Catarina were conferring. Alec nodded hello as he handed Madzie over to Catarina. He turned to find Magnus, only to come face to face with his father-in-law.

Asmodeus looked Alec up and down with undisguised interest. “And who might you be?”

Magnus arrived at Alec’s side so fast that Alec wondered if magic was involved. “Alexander! Thank you for coming to our little soirée. You must allow me to introduce you both. Asmodeus, this is my husband, Alec. Alec, you have of course met Asmodeus before, but since he currently has no memories, it might be best to start afresh.”

Asmodeus extended a hand for Alec to shake. “Ah, so you are the husband I’ve been hearing so much about! Well, my son certainly knows beauty when he sees it. What do you do for a living, Alexander?”

Alec pasted his best ‘Clave representative’ smile on his face. “Please, call me Alec. Without going into details, I suppose you could say that I run the New York branch of an international security firm.”

“That’s quite the achievement for one so young,” Asmodeus said, looking smugly proud. “You are as talented as you are beautiful, it seems. And I couldn’t possibly call you by such a diminutive name. It feels so…informal.”

Alec’s smile sharpened. “If you don’t want to call me Alec, you can always call me Mr Lightwood-Bane,” he suggested with an edge to his voice. “Magnus is the only person I like to call me by my full name. It’s a thing between us, a married thing. I’m sure you can understand why I would find my father-in-law using it uncomfortable.”

Asmodeus frowned slightly. “Oh, very well.”

“Father, why don’t you look through this catalogue and pick out some furniture for your apartment?” Magnus interrupted, thrusting a glossy magazine into Asmodeus’ hands. “Just make a note of anything you particularly like the look of, and I’ll see about getting it shipped as soon as possible.”

“Of course,” Asmodeus agreed, taking Magnus’ obvious brush-off with more dignity than Alec would have expected. “Please excuse me, Alexan— I mean, Alec. I’m sure we’ll have more of an opportunity to get to know each other later.”

“Right,” Alec agreed. He watched Asmodeus settle into an armchair—with the air of someone who was gracing a throne—and turned to his husband. “I’ve got mixed feelings about this,” he confessed. “Is it really safe to have him in his own apartment?”

Magnus was looking slightly frazzled. “It will actually be an extension of our apartment rather than a separate dwelling,” he explained. “I hope you don’t mind. I know I could probably have let him be taken off with the others to the safe-house that Tessa has arranged, but…”

“But he’s your father,” Alec finished. “It’s okay, Magnus. I get that there are complicated feelings involved. You don’t have to explain yourself to me. If you want to look after your amnesiac, ex-Greater Demon, Prince of Hell father; then I’ll support you in any way I can.”

“You never cease to amaze me,” Magnus murmured, kissing Alec softly. He hesitated. “It’s not just about my feelings. There is another—more practical—reason for housing him.”

“You’re worried about people who might want to get their hands on a former Greater Demon? Like maybe, I don’t know, the Clave?”

Magnus winced. “It’s not just the Clave that concerns me, dearest,” he said defensively. “What if an ambitious vampire decided to try and turn him? Who knows what would happen! Then there’s the matter of children.”

Alec blinked. “What children?”

Magnus gave him a significant look. “Any little half brothers or sisters that might be the result of my father running around unattended in an amnesiac state. Who knows what that would result in? As difficult as it may be, I think that it’s better to have him here where I can keep an eye on him until we have a better idea of what’s going on.”

“You’re probably right.”

“As far as we can determine, my father is the only one of his kind amongst the group,” Magnus went on. “For the rest, there are warlocks and werewolves, a couple of Seelie and, according to Maryse, at least three Shadowhunters. But only one pure-blood demon. Only one pure-blood _anything_ , for that matter, since denizens of the Shadow world are of mixed blood by definition.”

“Before I left this morning, you said that none of them had any magic.”

Magnus sighed. “Yes. Whatever happened to them, wherever they were, their magic and their memories have been stripped from them. Catarina has taken numerous blood samples for testing, and I’ve already suggested to Isabelle that a collaboration with the Institute on this matter might be in order.”

Alec raised his eyebrows. “I thought you wanted to try and keep this from the Clave.”

“Oh, Alexander, I know far better than to think that something of this magnitude can be kept from the Clave. Even then, I wouldn’t ask you to divide your loyalties like that. _Of course_ you must report what you discover. I just don’t want the Clave to completely take over this investigation and have everything disappear into the depths of Idris, never to be spoken of again. Lost magic or not, these are my people. I won’t hand them over without a fight.”

Alec nodded. “I think that given the events of the day I should call a Cabinet meeting,” he mused. “I know that Lorenzo is the High Warlock, but it might be a good idea for you to attend this one as well.”

“I would be delighted to,” Magnus assured him. “I wonder if Catarina would be amenable to watching my father for me while I’m gone?”

v^v^v^v

When Alec returned to the Institute, the first thing he did—after sending out notifications about an urgent meeting—was find Underhill and ask for an update on the Downworld Deputy Initiative. To his pleasure, Underhill had a presentation involving a rough policy document and several possible implementation strategies ready for Alec’s perusal.

A quick glance through showed that it covered the angles Alec wanted and that it had been designed for untroublesome amendment. There were only a few minor changes that Alec wanted to make before it could be presented to the local Downworld leadership. There was enough here to at least get the ball rolling. The Institute really couldn’t continue functioning the way it had been since Jonathon Morgenstern’s rampage. Efficiency ratings were already starting to drop.

It wasn’t that Alec cared about the efficiency ratings just because they looked good. It was about safety; for his people, but also for the Downworlders and Mundanes they were protecting. Hopefully, the Cabinet would agree. Magnus was already onside, and his approval would be highly valuable in his bid to convince the others. If there was one thing their public disagreement over the Seelie/Valentine thing had achieved, it was demonstrating to their small world that while Alec and Magnus might love each other madly, they were both still committed to doing what was best for their people.

The meeting went even better than Alec had hoped it would. The vampire contingent was still a little leery of the whole idea—Simon notwithstanding—but Maia was able to recommend several of her wolves straight away. She also mentioned that she’d been working hard with her pack, strengthening the bonds and ensuring that they all felt safe and happy and were in control of their shifts.

Lorenzo promised that there would be a significant warlock contingent. He was clearly enjoying the power inherent in his position and was just as clearly annoyed at Magnus’ presence at the meeting.

Meliorn was accompanied by another Fae warrior Alec had never met before, although Magnus seemed to be on nodding acquaintance with her. She definitely carried her sword like she knew how to use it. Meliorn introduced her as the Unseelie King’s representative, which was only a little surprising. The Unseelie King was traditionally more internally focused and usually didn’t concern himself much with matters outside the Seelie realm, leaving that to the Queen’s discretion. It made a certain amount of sense that until a new Queen was appointed—and maybe even after—he would be keeping a closer eye on things.

The meeting lasted just over four hours, but by the time it was done a tentative plan had been formed, and the basis for an agreement had been hammered out. It would need further work and then would have to be ratified by each group’s leaders for true legitimacy, but Alec came away hopeful that the first steps had been laid towards something workable that was good for everyone, and that had a chance of lasting.

Provided the Clave didn’t stick their size twelves in and stuff it up.

It was helpful for Alec to have Izzy and Jace on his side, and to be married to the warlock that almost singlehandedly saved the whole of Idris. At present, Magnus and Alec had political capital to burn in Idris. Alec couldn’t think of a better way to use it than to try and set up something that had the potential of building lasting beneficial relationships between the Clave and the Downworld that they had run roughshod over for so long.

Walking over the threshold into the loft, Alec felt the tension and stress of the day lift from his shoulders. No matter how his day had gone, the sensation of Magnus’ wards sliding over his skin never failed to make him feel better.

Arriving home to find their cosy apartment occupied by Asmodeus was a bit of a dampener, but Magnus—who was just as thrilled as Alec by how the meeting went—just pulled him into the bedroom, locking the door and soundproofing the room with a wave of his hand. Dinner would have to wait.

v^v^v^v

The next week was the closest thing Magnus and Alec’s marriage had come to a test. Asmodeus would never have been Alec’s first choice as a co-habitant, and he wasn’t sure if the memory loss thing was as much as an advantage as it had first appeared to be.

Mind-wiped or not, Asmodeus retained many of the character traits that had made Alec wary of him in the first place. For one, he was very concerned with status. Which he made clear after having the ins and outs of the Shadow World explained to him.

“This, Lorenzo Rey,” he said as the three of them sat down for a very late dinner that first evening. “I understand he is the High Warlock of the region? Which means that he has dominion and influence over all of the warlocks that reside within his area?”

Magnus and Alec exchanged glances. Magnus had already related to Alec exactly how and why Lorenzo had been occupying a terrarium in Magnus’ apartment, a story that Alec had probably enjoyed more than was appropriate. Clearly, Asmodeus’ thoughts were running along the same lines as they had then.

“Theoretically, yes,” Magnus responded, sounding so aggressively casual that Alec had to raise his glass to his mouth to hide his smile. “I myself was High Warlock for many years. I’ll admit, at first I was chagrined that Lorenzo was chosen to fill that role in my place, but I’ve since come to see what happened as the opportunity it truly is.”

Asmodeus didn’t look convinced. “Oh?”

Magnus lifted his wine glass and swirled it around, admiring the vibrant liquid within. “The title of High Warlock does sound very grand, of course, but the responsibilities that come with it can be rather onerous and are rather demanding. Rather than the warlocks being beholden to the High Warlock, it is all too often the other way around. And it’s not just other warlocks. A High Warlock is required to maintain a visible presence in his locality, which quite effectively ties them in place. The High Warlock is in high demand and is required to make their services affordable to all who require them, which limits the acquisition of personal wealth. In all honesty, the High Warlock position was rather expensive to maintain.”

Alec nodded along in support. If his husband wanted to paint himself as a mercenary hedonist, only out for what he could get, then Alec was only too ready to help him.

He recalled reading Magnus’ Clave file, which had him listed as asking ludicrously high prices to perform the simplest of spells, but Alec’s own personal experience gave the lie to that. And that was even before they had begun to mean anything to one another. He’d several times contemplated the possibility that Magnus’ reputation was carefully cultivated to sound uninviting so that he wasn’t inundated continuously with desperate-sounding tales of woe. Magnus _pretended_ to be as prickly as a porcupine, but his soft centre was so incredibly obvious to anyone who cared to look that Alec sometimes wondered how so many people managed to miss it.

Asmodeus frowned. “Are you saying that you _don’t_ owe him your fealty?”

This time Magnus’ laugh sounded genuine. “Warlocks are like cats, father. We give no one our fealty. Some individuals have our grudging respect, of course, and the High Warlock position is one way in which to garner that respect. There are other ways, however. The entire Shadow world knows that I was part of a select group of individuals who were responsible for the destruction of a demonic realm. Before _that_ , I singlehandedly held closed a breach between that realm and this one that threatened the entire world. I really have no need for any title other than my own name.” He smiled at Alec. “Or that of ‘husband,’ I suppose, but that is another matter.”

“Lorenzo offered to relinquish the title,” Alec informed his father-in-law. “Magnus declined.”

Magnus made a pfft noise. “Our dear Lorenzo is finding the High Warlock position is a lot harder than I made it look.” If there was more than a hint or two of gleeful smugness, then Alec couldn’t really blame him. Despite his attitude now, Alec knew that Magnus had been deeply hurt by the decision to oust him as High Warlock. Lorenzo hadn’t helped matters either, with his decree that none of New York’s warlocks could give Magnus any aid.

“Good!” Asmodeus said approvingly. “I’m glad to see that my son is respected amongst his peers. Now tell me, Alec, what are your plans for the future?”

What followed was a grilling, not unlike the ones Alec used to receive from his own parents.

v^v^v^v

At the Institute Alec was hard at work trying to ensure the Downworlder Deputy Initiative succeeded. He was simultaneously assisting Magnus with the ‘Travellers,’ the name given to the group that had appeared in their apartment. He also had to keep ahead of the Institute paperwork, all while running a standard patrol shift. As one of the Institutes best fighters, Alec’s presence out in the field would have been greatly missed.

There were also a couple of Shadowhunters who had required cycling out when Alec made an Institute-wide announcement that the Downworld Deputy Initiative would be implemented before the month was out. He made it clear that anyone who couldn’t work effectively and professionally with Downworlders, or who took issue with Downworlders being ranked equally to them, should transfer out of their own accord. Alec wasn’t going to be kind to anyone who put the program in jeopardy.

All in all, their loss was a good thing. More left than Alec had hoped, but less than he feared, and it was heartening to know that everyone who remained was at least open to the idea of working together with Downworlders, despite the prejudice they’d been taught from infancy.

After all, it was Clave policy that Downworlders were wrong by their very existence. Alec knew all too well that it wasn’t the easiest thing to challenge the beliefs that you were brought up with, and having so many Shadowhunters that seemed enthusiastic about what he was trying to achieve was heartening.

The Cabinet had agreed that the best thing to do would be to have everyone train together before trying any kind of integration. They wanted to allow groups to form as naturally as possible.

There were understandable limitations; for instance, Simon aside, the Vampires could only patrol at night. The Seelies were much more effective in the parts of the city where nature was more abundant than they were in the concrete and metal warehouse areas. Not that Alec let a person’s species be the deciding factor in their patrol route. Everyone needed to be familiar with everywhere and everything, he just ensured that for the most part people got sent where they could be most effective.

Soon it started to pay off, and Alec could almost feel the walls of the Institute give a sigh of relief as the inhabitants went from a constant state of high tension back to the more common alert readiness. It was a sign that everything was flowing well.

Meanwhile, none of the Travellers showed any signs of regaining their magic, their abilities, or their memories. They remained as Mundane as they had appeared that morning. All except one.

Naturally, the one that would buck the trend would be Asmodeus.

A week after their appearance, Magnus came by Alec’s office to report with some alarm that he had started to get a magical reading from his father.

“It’s only very faint,” he said, “but it is there, and it’s growing.”

“But none of the others show any signs, right?” Alec checked.

“Not a one,” Magnus confirmed. He cocked his head to one side. “It makes sense, I suppose.”

“In what way?”

“Most Downworlders get their strength from their blood,” Magnus explained. “Whether it was blood they were born with or something that happened that changed them, like werewolves and vampires. That was how Aldertree was curing them. He forcibly changed their blood with the heavenly fire. Warlocks are a bit different, our magic isn’t tied to our blood quite the same way, although it _is_ generated from within us. But Greater Demon’s don’t just gain their magic from within, they’re also supported by the magic of their realm as well.”

“Edom,” Alec said. “But I thought Edom was destroyed?”

“Everything _in_ Edom was destroyed,” Magnus corrected. “The realm itself remains. An empty place, to be sure, but still there. It can never be completely eradicated, not without also destroying all the realms that connected with it. To do so would require exacting precision and a great deal of power, more power than belongs to any being that I’m aware of. I don’t think that all the power of the angels and demons _combined_ could achieve it.”

“Is that one of the things the Greater Demons are fighting over?” Alec asked. “Who gets to claim the realm?”

“Most probably,” Magnus nodded. “Of course, they might get a bit of a shock when they do.”

“What? Why? Because Asmodeus is back?”

“Indeed,” Magnus smirked. “Although, I think that Asmodeus’ use of my magic before he was stranded in limbo might also play a part. I would pay good money to see the look on various Greater Demon’s faces when they try to sink their power into a realm that is not, in fact, untethered and open for possession.” He sighed. “I might have guessed that my father wasn’t truly dead when my own connection to Edom wasn’t broken. The upheaval would help explain the inconsistencies I’ve been having with my magic.” He raised an eyebrow at Alec. “I’m sure you recall the time when my spell rather overshot itself, turning a simple time-extension into something far more substantial.”

Alec couldn’t help the smile that spread over his face. Yes, he remembered those extra hours with great fondness. “Okay, I can see that the signs have been there if we’d known what to look for. But wait. If you’re connected to Edom through your father’s blood, and your father’s connection to Edom is why his magic is generating, then why aren’t the other warlocks recovering? Wouldn’t they be connected to their demon parent’s realm as well?”

“It’s not the blood that’s the important factor for warlocks,” Magnus said. “It’s the magic. For Asmodeus… Perhaps things might have gone differently had I not traded my magic to him, and had you not traded for its return. Maybe Edom would be a true blank slate, a prize to be fought over and won by whichever demon comes out on top of the war. As it is, my link to Edom was never severed.”

“Asmodeus came back though,” Alec pointed out. “And since his magic is regenerating then his connection is still there.”

“Exactly,” Magnus agreed. “Even then, there are a few questions that I would like answers to. For instance, I would have thought that even in this realm, his magic should be returning far faster than it has been. Then again, who knows the true ins-and-outs of dimensional magic? If his memories were not gone, no doubt my father would have had some insight, but…” He shrugged.

Alec was reminded of why they were having this discussion in the first place. “Speaking of that, if his magic is returning, does that mean that his memory is too?”

Magnus sighed. “We can’t discount the possibility. This is all made a lot harder, of course, because if my father’s memory _is_ returning, then he will naturally do all that he can to conceal it from us.”

“Do you really think so?”

“You met my father before I threw him in limbo,” Magnus pointed out. “Do you really think that he wouldn’t use whatever situation he found himself to his best advantage? Not to mention that if he _does_ regain his memory, then he’ll no doubt _also_ be remembering me informing him of my plan to knock him unconscious and shove him through a portal.”

Alec winced. Yeah, that might strain even their fledgling new relationship. “I suppose doing something to make sure his memory stays gone would be bad too?” he suggested half-heartedly, not really meaning it.

Magnus rolled his eyes. “I would love to just wave my magic wand and make all the nasty things in the world disappear, Alexander, but unfortunately, we have to deal with reality. And while I have, in the past, been known to tamper with people’s memories, it has only ever been at the request of the person involved. Or their primary caregiver, in Clarissa’s case, and we all know how that turned out.” Magnus gave a theatrical shudder.

Alec shifted uncomfortably. That memory-demon thing hadn’t been his finest hour. Now that he’d experienced what romantic love really was, Alec understood that his feelings for Jace weren’t the ‘endless love’ that he’d struggled with, that he’d been so ashamed of.

The truth is that Jace was not only a good-looking man—who was _not_ related to him, despite their brother-like bond—but the most highly-skilled male Shadowhunter of Alec’s acquaintance. Alec hadn’t really had a lot of options for his pubescent libido to fixate on. Alec and his siblings had been isolated far more than most Shadowhunter children during their training, which Alec had lately realised was a direct result of Maryse and Robert’s desire to keep their exile from Idris secret from their children.

Izzy and Jace had solved the problem of their relative isolation by going out into the city and finding distractions there. However, Alec had never been as interested in that lifestyle. He’d always done his best to be as faultless as possible in the hope that, if he was perfect enough, everyone would overlook the shame of his sexual orientation. It would have been astonishing if his hormones hadn’t focussed on the only target around as an object to fantasise over.

Izzy had always known, it seemed, and she’d never been all that worried about it, concerned more for Alec’s wellbeing and how he was affected than what his feelings might say about him as a person. Perhaps she’d always known that his feelings weren’t the world-ending, shameful, hopeless, pine-away-forever variety that he’d always thought them to be.

It hadn’t helped his confusion that, while Alec enjoyed looking at the male form, he wasn’t interested in one-night stands or short flings. At one point, he’d thought that it was proof that he was in love with Jace and would be forever, but a frank discussion with Magnus about different sexualities had been eye-opening. Maybe his lack of interest in meaningless sex wasn’t proof that Alec was in love with Jace, just an expression of his need to have an emotional attachment to his partner before feeling sexual desire. Magnus had described demi-sexuality, and everything about it made so much sense to Alec. He wished he’d known about that sooner, it might have saved him a lot of heartache.

The culmination of that—the embarrassment of his reaction when faced with the price the memory demon had demanded—was something that still popped up in his dreams sometimes. And really, Jace was his parabatai! After Magnus, it would be a toss-up over whether Jace or Izzy would have been at the top of the list on any given day, so back then the memory demon pulling a memory of Jace as his ‘most treasured’ wasn’t _proof_ of anything.

Alec shook his head, focusing back on the matter at hand. “You mean you could do it in theory?”

“In _theory,_ I could do a lot of things,” Magnus said, narrowing his eyes at Alec. “In reality, there are things that I will not do. Playing with people’s minds without consent is one of them. Besides, Asmodeus is a Greater Demon. There’s no guarantee that what works on a part-human would be effective on him. I, for one, don’t want to find out just what kind of reaction a Greater Demon has to someone playing with his mind.”

Alec sighed. “I knew that. And I wouldn’t ask you to do that anyway, I just wish…”

“That life would slow down long enough for you to get bored?” Magnus asked gently. “There is an old tale of an ancient Chinese curse, ‘May you live in interesting times.’ It’s fake, as far as I know, but I sometimes think we all must have been terrible people in a former life considering what we have to deal with in this one.”

Alec laughed. “So, you believe in reincarnation then?”

Magnus waved his hand. “Not really. I mean, I don’t _not_ believe in reincarnation. Let’s just say that no theory has offered up enough proof one way or the other yet, and so I’m open to many possibilities.”

“You don’t think the existence of ghosts is proof of life after death?”

Magnus raised his eyebrows. “I think that ghosts are proof of _magic_ , my dear. Are they remnants of people who’ve died? Could they be reflections, based on our own memories only, or wisps that take forms they glean from our minds to garner a reaction from us? Any of those could be true. They _could_ be souls that for some reason are having difficulty moving on, or souls waiting in the queue for their chance at reincarnation. They could be anything, and they’re proof of nothing. In truth, I don’t think it really matters. I think I’ve come across far too many people who are far too focussed on what might be coming after they die. The only true moment anyone ever has is the one we’re living through right now.”

“Live in the moment?” Alec asked. “I thought you once told me that it wasn’t all it was cracked up to be.”

“There’s a difference between living in the moment and living as if each moment is the only one that matters,” Magnus said. “We should live each moment as fully as we possibly can because we don’t know how many moments we have. We should try to do good in the world because bringing joy to others is more rewarding than bringing them pain, not because we’re racking up imaginary brownie points for a future existence that might never happen.” He stopped, looking self-conscious. “Forgive me, Alexander, I didn’t mean to get on a soapbox and start preaching.”

“I like hearing you talk,” Alec said. “Sometimes, the things that you say make a lot of sense. You can clarify thoughts that I’ve had, but didn’t know how to put into words.”

“I’m glad I could be of service,” Magnus said with a short bow. “But I believe we’ve strayed from the topic. I think we’ll just have to deal with what happens with my father as and when it occurs.” He sighed. “Let’s look on the bright side, shall we? It might never happen.”

“Well, it’s definitely going to happen now,” Alec groused.

Magnus smiled at him. “Coincidence is not causation, Alexander. Besides, it’s entirely possible that his new love of art will supersede any nefarious intentions, even if his memory does return.”

Asmodeus had taken to filling his copious spare time by watching art classes online and then trying his hand at the various mediums. Alec didn’t think of himself as a connoisseur by any stretch of the imagination, but to his eye, Asmodeus’s stuff looked pretty good.

He brightened. “You think?”

Magnus patted him gently on the cheek. “I love how hopeful you are, darling. Now, are you just about done here for the day? I’m feeling like Italian for dinner.”

v^v^v^v

In an effort to drown out his feelings, Jace had taken to going out on patrol three times a day. It wasn’t ideal—studies had shown that Shadowhunters couldn’t maintain a schedule like that for long before breaking down—but Alec knew what battles were worth fighting, and this wasn’t one of them. So long as Jace wasn’t hunting alone, Alec would allow it. And if he checked in with the patrol leaders a little more often than was really necessary, then so be it. He wouldn’t apologise for loving and taking care of his family.

By the end of the second week, they had a few more answers. Not that much had changed with the Travellers—except for Asmodeus, whose magic Magnus reported was continuing to replenish at a glacially slow but nevertheless steady rate—but the tests that the Spiral Labyrinth and the Clave had been running on the blood showed some fascinating stuff.

While the blood of the Travellers clearly displayed markers that were usually only found in the race that they had once belonged to, it seemed that a protein that was only found in Downworld blood was missing.

“Their bodies just aren’t making it anymore,” Izzy said, eyes alight with scientific enthusiasm. “Although we’ve been able to use those markers to narrow down the former species of the remaining unidentified Travellers. Which means that while we still don’t their names, we know that there are three Werewolves, two Nephilim, and two Warlocks.”

“I suppose that makes sense,” Magnus said thoughtfully.

Izzy blinked. “I’m sorry, what?”

“That none of the unidentified people used to be Seelie,” he explained. “Warlocks don’t really take a proper census, and we don’t keep proper records. Shadowhunters are extremely numerous. Given the high mortality rate—coupled with instances where bodies might be unrecognisable or even unrecoverable—it’s not surprising that several might have fallen through the cracks. Werewolves, on the other hand, are concentrated into their little packs… Hmmm. There aren’t any Vampires. I wonder why that is?”

“Once we knew two of the remaining Travellers used to be Shadowhunters, we were able to use DNA matching to discover who they were,” Izzy said. “Both of them were reported dead in the Uprising. Since they were both confirmed Circle members, their families didn’t exactly advertise their disappearances.”

“Does anyone have any idea what we should do with them all?” Alec asked since it seemed that no one else was going to address the elephant in the room.

“The Clave has issued a standing offer to house any of the Travellers that wish it,” Alec went on. “I think that even the most trusting and naive of us can recognise _that_ for what it is. I’ve also heard suggestions that the Mortal Cup might be used to restore those Shadowhunters that have ‘lost themselves’ back to their birthright, but with the knowledge that some of them used to be Circle members…” He grimaced. He personally didn’t want to bring that crazy back.

“Is there any way to tell if re-activating their blood will bring back their memories?” Lorenzo asked.

Izzy shrugged. “Not without trying it. And given that the markers are already present in the blood, it might not work at all. A werewolf bite might just be a painful bite, drinking from the Mortal Cup might just be a gross bloody cocktail.”

Magnus tilted his head to one side. “What about the experiments that Aldertree was running, his ‘Downworlder cure?’ I wonder what would happen if we gave _that_ to these people? Would it remove the markers, or have another effect?” He shook his head. “The problem is that the only way to really find out the answers to these questions is by experimenting. Experimenting on live, sentient subjects, which is repugnant.”

“Look, _we_ didn’t do this to them,” Alec said. “Maybe the best thing we can do for them now is to find a place for them in the world, and then let them go off and live Mundane lives.”

Izzy sighed. “The problem with _that_ is that we all know there are people out there who aren’t going to want to leave it at that,” she pointed out. “The Clave has already openly expressed their interest. Can we really guarantee that elements working within it—or the Spiral Labyrinth, the Seelie court, or the Praetor Lupus for that matter—won’t just wait until no-one’s looking, pick up whatever Travellers they can find, and run their own experiments? At least if it’s _us_ doing it, then we can ensure that the ethics have been considered and that the subjects aren’t harmed in any way.”

“I think that no matter what we do, the Travellers are going to be in danger for the rest of their lives,” Magnus said seriously. “Even if we manage to ‘cure’ them, even if all of them have miraculous recoveries where they’re completely back to their former selves, memories and powers intact, then there are still those who would do harm to them in the name of science.”

“I think that the only thing we can ethically do is lay all of this information before the Travellers and let them make their own choices,” Alec said pensively. “They might not have their memories, but their ability to reason seems intact. Catarina has mentioned that a number of them are already chafing at their circumstances. Imprisoning them for their own good isn’t an answer either. _Something_ has to be done.”

There was silence as Alec’s words were considered. Izzy was the first to speak. “Alec is right,” she said simply. “We need to let them choose for themselves.”


	3. Chapter 3

## Chapter three

Most of the Travellers were sick of hanging around with nothing to do and more than willing to take whatever risks they needed to so they could just get on with living their lives.

Nine of them were concerned enough about being abducted and experimented on that they came together as a group and asked Ayyash, the Spiral Labyrinth representative, if he would be willing to be their advocate for negotiations with the Clave. They agreed to offer up samples and to be part of a test group to see if using the Mortal Cup or being bitten again would assist them, either in regaining their memories or at least by giving them a new community to which to belong.

Three of them were just terrified. Terrified of being captured and experimented on, terrified of undergoing even above-board testing, terrified of regaining their memories, terrified of just living. After some discussion it was agreed that they would be allowed to join the Spiral Labyrinth, to work in the archives there. They consented to be fit with magical tethers that would stop them from running off with the irreplaceable items housed there, under the understanding that these tethers would also keep the warlocks they trust notified about their wellbeing. That meant that if anyone tried anything with them, Magnus, Catarina, Lorenzo, and Ayyash would all know about it right away.

Alec couldn’t help but think that it sounded a lot like prison. It was their choice though, freely chosen, and so he didn’t protest it. He didn’t really have time to spend worrying about them.

The Downworld Deputy Initiative was going forward, full steam ahead. The first Downworlder volunteers that had been endorsed by their leaders were nearing completion of the intensive training programme that Underhill’s group had devised. Unsurprisingly, they were doing very well. Alec would have been shocked if it had turned out otherwise. It made sense that the Downworld leaders would initially send some of their most trusted and capable members so that they could gauge how this new initiative would pan out.

No, the training itself wasn’t the bit that Alec was keeping his eye on. He was more concerned about monitoring the interactions between the various Downworld groups for signs of tension. Even more critical was the Downworlder interactions with the Shadowhunters that would be fighting with them, and vice versa. He made a point of joining several of the training sessions, sharing tips and tricks with the two Seelie candidates that favoured the bow, and taking instruction from one of the vampires in hand-to-hand fighting techniques.

Izzy and Jace both followed his example. Jace appeared thrilled at the chance to beat up a new set of people that hadn’t learned to be wary enough of him yet, and Izzy probably would have joined in anyway, but admittedly took a pretty big interest in how Simon was faring.

Simon had put his name down as a prospective deputy, although he wasn’t formally connected to any of the clans. Given the erratic reputation changes that Simon had experienced with New York’s Downworld population, Alec was a little surprised at the open respect that he was currently being showed by the other Vampire candidates.

“Is it because you’re a Daylighter?” Izzy asked as they all sat down for lunch after the first training session.

“I don’t think so?” Simon answered, sounding confused. “It’s a kind-of new thing. Ever since I had the Mark of Cain removed, they’ve…avoided me, really. Or if they can’t avoid me, they’re very…nice?”

“The Vampires…are being nice to you,” Alec repeated, trying not to sound as unimpressed as he felt. Simon was Izzy’s boyfriend, after all, and while Alec still couldn’t see what she found in him to like so much, he tried to be supportive of her choices. Even if that meant making nice with Simon. Well, as nice as he could manage, anyway.

Simon either didn’t pick up on his lack of enthusiasm or didn’t care. “I know! It’s totally weird, right? They used to be all, “Don’t try and pretend to be one of us, freak,” and now they’re like, “Oh, hey there, please don’t smite me.” I mean, it’s not like I go around smiting people, so I don’t know where that’s coming from.”

Izzy gave Alec a slightly scolding look. “Well, if it’s not because you’re a Daylighter, maybe it’s something to do with the ritual to remove the Mark of Cain?”

Simon brightened. “Oh yeah, did I tell you that Cain is in New York? I’m not sure why he made his way here from France, and I think he’s still living in the sewers, but he’s stopped by my place a couple of times now. I’ve suggested he should stay, you know, because it can’t be fun hanging down with the rats all the time, but he just mutters and leaves.” Simon frowned. “Maybe it’s the idea of having a shower. Cause I told him that if he wanted to put his head down on any of my furniture, he was going to have to wash his hair pretty thoroughly. Or maybe cut it all off.”

Alec was forcing himself to listen with some semblance of politeness. He couldn’t help wondering if this was really everything Izzy had been hoping for. She was directing an indulgent smile at her boyfriend, like he was a particularly adorable puppy.

Alec shook his head, deciding it was none of his business. “I have work I need to get done.” He got to his feet, cutting off Simon’s monologue about whether ancient Vampires really understood the importance and relevance of shampoo. “Got to get back to the office and churn out some more of that riveting paperwork. Good luck with the training, Simon. I’ll see you at the meeting this afternoon, Izzy.”

Izzy smiled knowingly at him. “Bye, Alec.”

“Oh, sure, bye, Alec,” Simon said.

As Alec walked away, he could hear Simon ask Izzy if Alec was mad at him for some reason.

Alec scraped his plate clean and stacked it up, giving his hands a quick wash. Rather than head back to his office, he made his way to the security centre where Underhill was doing a systems-check of the surveillance hardware. “Anything to report?”

Underhill shook his head. “Either she’s being extremely paranoid, or she’s not in contact with any of the rogue groups,” he informed Alec. “Of course, the kind of scrutiny you asked for would miss several covert methods of communication.”

Alec rolled his eyes. “Unfortunately, just because we don’t like her, it doesn’t mean that we can run deep surveillance on her. Just…make sure you do regular irregular sweeps for bugs or other clandestine monitoring devices. I’ll send Magnus down here at least once a week for a magical sweep. Between you both we should at least manage to keep operations somewhat secured, even if we can’t guarantee our people are on the up and up.”

Underhill nodded. “I’ve been talking to two of my officers who are also leaders of their patrol groups,” he remarked, apparently ready for a change of subject. “They’ve both shown preferences about wishing to include certain deputies in their patrol set-up. I was thinking that I should post the sign-up sheets at the end of the week and see how many of our new people get snapped up.”

“There are more than enough candidates for each four-person squad to be assigned one,” Alec said thoughtfully. “Although it might be better—at least at first—to shuffle things around so that the Downworlders join patrol groups in pairs.”

Underhill pulled up the schedule on his tablet. “Are you wanting to reassign the patrol groups to make room, or join patrol groups together and widen their route?”

“What do you think would be most effective?” Alec asked him. “Keep in mind that we’re less concerned about efficiency, and more about making sure that our people— _all_ our people—can work together safely and effectively.”

“Well, with the Downworlder numbers added to ours that puts us well over the optimum minimal numbers,” Underhill said, flicking through several screens. “I think that if it was up to me, I’d join patrols together. That way, each patrol can have two Downworld Deputies, which means that they’re not going to feel isolated and the Shadowhunters are still going to feel like they have control.”

Alec grimaced. “Yes, I see what you mean. This Initiative isn’t going to succeed if the Shadowhunters are resisting. We’ve got to make sure that they’re not made too uncomfortable right off; even if I just want to shake the stupid off them sometimes.”

“We have more warlocks than anything else,” Underhill remarked. “What if we sent each patrol group out with a Warlock and one other? That way, the skill sets will be passed around a little more evenly.”

“Also, if something ‘happens,’ the Warlock will be able to portal the Downworlders out of there,” Alec agreed. “Not that I’m expecting any of the Shadowhunters here to pull something so underhanded. Still, knowing that they have a way out in case things _do_ go wrong will doubtless put our Downworld friends more at ease.”

“I agree,” Underhill said.

Alec rocked back on his heels, thoughtfully. “I’ve changed my mind. While we’re doing a shake-up, I want all the patrol groups shuffled around. Let’s not stick Downworld Deputies into already established teams and leave them to feel like outsiders. That will also give you an excuse to make sure that Penmount and Ashheart are separated and in groups full of people that aren’t going to give credence to any fear-mongering that they might try to start.”

“I’ll get onto it right away,” Underhill promised. “If we’re doing a full reshuffle, are you wanting to keep the eight Shadowhunters to every two Downworlders ratio?”

“Drop that to groups of eight total,” Alec instructed. “One Warlock, one other Deputy, six Shadowhunters. That way there should be enough leeway for some extra rotating leave. Let’s try and start treating our people as though they’re people again, shall we?”

Underhill frowned as he made notes. “I’ll do my best, sir.”

“If you need help, Jace should be free this afternoon,” Alec suggested. “He’s spent a lot of time on patrol recently, so he’ll probably have some useful insights as to who would work best where, and who might be saying the right things, but acting differently when they were out in the field, no longer under surveillance.

Underhill made another note on his tablet. “Was there anything else, sir?”

“No, I think that’s enough to be getting on with,” Alec said. “I’ll see you at the meeting later.”

v^v^v^v

That night Alec didn’t get home till after nine. He felt it was worth it; the schedules had been worked out to the satisfaction of him, Jace, and Underhill—with Izzy promising to give them a look-over to see if there was anything obvious that they’d missed. Unless something else unexpectedly cropped up, Alec would finally be entirely caught up on Institute business by the end of the week.

It would be the first time everything was properly in order since Aldertree left. For someone who liked to spout off about rules and requirements, and who breathed down everyone else’s necks for their perceived breaches in regulations, Aldertree had left far too much of the administrative side of running the New York Institute undone.

Luckily for Alec, he’d been running the Institute in all but name for years now. He already knew what needed to be done and when it needed to be done by. When various files weren’t where they were meant to be, he knew to go looking for them; and when regular reminders didn’t activate the way they always had in the past, he remembered the tasks involved anyway.

It was almost like Aldertree was determined that whoever followed him as Head of New York Institute would have to suffer. Well, Alec had the last laugh. Now that he was the Head and had complete control over everything—rather than having to defer to his parents’ final choices—things were being run the way he’d been wanting to run them for a while now.

Several internal checks and balances that he’d suggested, that had been dismissed by his parents as ‘micro-managing,’ were now in place and the results spoke for themselves. Even with all the upheaval going on—the roster changes, the rapid transfer of staff—injury numbers were at an all-time low. Even better, under his command, no one had died on a routine mission yet.

He knew that he wouldn’t be able to keep this up forever. There were always going to be those situations that couldn’t be accounted for. Nevertheless, Alec was making history with the Clave for his record as a new Head, figures that meant that his recommendations wouldn’t just be ignored as the ideas of someone new who didn’t know what he was talking about.

Even knowing that the hard work he’d been putting in was necessary and temporary, he still slightly resented it. Now that the end was in sight, he could finally start paying more attention to his home life.

“Hey, Magnus,” he said, smiling gratefully as his wonderful husband set a plate of something steaming and noodle-y in front of him with a flourish. It smelt amazing. “Want to come and have lunch with me tomorrow? I’m finally all caught up after the mess that Aldertree left, and I feel like celebrating.”

Magnus waggled his eyebrows. “Why, Alexander, are you suggesting that we indulge in a little afternoon delight?” He came around the counter to lean against Alec, dropping a kiss behind his ear and nuzzling at his hairline.

Alec frowned. “Is that like Turkish Delight? Cause that stuff’s not all that great.”

Magnus dropped his face and laughed into Alec’s neck. “I promise you that ‘afternoon delight’ is in a whole different realm of enjoyment than Turkish Delight. Don’t worry, I’ll show you tomorrow.”

“You can ‘check on the wards’ again.”

“The wards have never felt better,” Magnus informed him. “I’d be feeling even more unbearably smug about it if I could just figure out what I did that made them that way. I’ve never seen wards so firmly attached to an Institute.”

Alec sighed. “I told Underhill that you would stop by and make sure that no-one’s planted any listening devices in the security sector,” he said, twirling some noodles around his fork and then spearing a slice of onion and a chunk of beef with the tines. “We’ve got at least one person that we think might be working with the rogues. Until we get some confirmation one way or another, I want to be extra-vigilant.”

“Of course, Alexander,” Magnus promised.

Alec closed his eyes to savour his food. Magnus, as always, had provided something absolutely delicious. Alec chewed in bliss.

“I’m truly living my best life,” he declared after swallowing. He opened his eyes and took a sip of the crisp white wine that Magnus had provided. “Seriously, I don’t think life can get any better than this.”

“Oh, my dear Alec,” Magnus said, shaking his head. “You are so easily pleased, and your levels of expectation are worryingly low. But don’t worry, I aim to make sure that you ‘live your best life’ as much as possible.” He waited until Alec had finished his next mouthful, and then darted in for a swift kiss. “Now, eat up. I’ll run us a bath; we can lie back and relax for a little while before bed. My father has informed me that he is ‘Communing with his muse’ and doesn’t intend to grace us with his presence this evening, so we have the place to ourselves.”

Alec hummed contentedly and took another bite.

v^v^v^v

The next two weeks went by swiftly. Jace continued his self-imposed mission of personally overseeing the training sessions of everyone attached to the New York Institute, and only disappeared to watch over Clary occasionally. Alec had tried to convince him that what he was doing was not just bad for him but an invasion of Clary’s privacy, but Jace had argued that he only ever followed her when she was out and about, to make sure that she was safe. Alec knew that he didn’t have enough people available to set up a dedicated watch for her, and the truth was that she _was_ in some danger, lack of memories or not, so he didn’t argue too hard.

The Spiral Labyrinth very quickly organised new lives for the Travellers that wanted to be integrated into Mundane society and sent them out, with planned weekly check-ins so that they could be kept track of.

The nine that were undergoing tests in the hope that they could be reabsorbed into the Shadow World were still in the safehouse. It had been remodelled, giving those that remained their own private space. Izzy and her team of scientists met with them regularly.

The three who wanted safety had disappeared into the Spiral Labyrinth, and Alec truly wished them the best. All three of them had been warlocks before their trip into limbo, so maybe it felt familiar and comforting on some level.

Asmodeus was still slowly regenerating his magic. Magnus and Alec were keeping a close eye on him to see if his memories were returning as well, but so far, there was no indication that he remembered anything before being dumped out of limbo. The rather impressive portfolio of artwork that he was building up contained nothing to suggest otherwise. Everything was recognisable from people and places he’d been exposed to since his return.

“How long is this going to take?” Alec wondered. “Does magic regeneration usually take this long?”

“No,” Magnus shook his head. “A Warlock would have been back to full strength weeks ago. But then my father is not a Warlock, so we can’t expect to base his recovery on that.”

“What are we going to tell him if he asks about what he was like before he lost his memory?” Alec asked.

Magnus looked uncomfortable. “He’s hinted several times that he wants to know,” he replied. “I’m not sure I can tell him. There’s just too much…history. If it comes up, and you think it’s a good time, _you_ should do it, Alexander.”

“Are you sure?” Alec asked. “I’m not the best person for heartfelt talks, you know.”

“You’re perfect,” Magnus insisted. “I trust you to know when the time is right.”

v^v^v^v

There were a few small bumps and bruises, but the implementation of the Downworld Deputy Initiative mostly went smoothly. By two weeks into it, most of the rough edges had been dealt with. The Shadowhunters and the Downworlders on their teams seemed to be finding appreciation in each others’ skills.

Every time Alec walked past one of the training rooms and saw mixed groups training together of their own accord outside mandated training times, he felt a warm glow. This was the kind of integration that could make a difference in Shadow World relationships, this kind of acceptance at the lowest, unremarkable levels of their society. Provided that the upper echelons weren’t actively trying to block or sabotage it, this is where the start of real change could happen.

Naturally, it was when everything had started to regain some semblance of calm that the next upheaval happened.

Alec and Magnus had invited most of their close circle around for dinner on a Thursday night, in the hope of providing a broader group of people for Asmodeus to relate to. It was a calculated risk; both Magnus and Alec were cognizant that if Asmodeus regained his memories, he could use the inevitable increased familiarity against their loved ones. On the other hand, they couldn’t keep him shut up forever; they needed to start somewhere.

Everything seemed to be going well. Izzy and Simon were there, along with Catarina and Madzie. Jace had brought Max with him as his plus-one, pointing out Madzie’s presence when Alec had wondered aloud whether it was a good idea.

Magnus and Alec had agreed wholeheartedly that, regardless of the strides she’d been making recently, asking Maryse to make nice with a Greater Demon might be asking too much, especially without Luke. Luke was in Idris, at one of the training stations, taking a refresher on changes made to Clave policy, strategies, and methods, during his time as a Werewolf.

Maia and Meliorn had joined them, which was unexpected and highly enjoyable. Maia’s pack responsibilities coupled with her already busy schedule meant that she wasn’t often available to socialise with, and Meliorn had related that he was under a lot of scrutiny from both the Seelie and the Unseelie court.

The Unseelie King had informed the Clave that determining any remaining internal culpability for the recent cluster-fuck—the late Seelie Queen’s blatant grasp for power that had backfired on her so spectacularly—would be a task for the next Queen.

“That’s rather surprising,” Magnus said, eyebrows raised. “I was under the impression that the Unseelie King’s primary responsibility was internal security. What could be more important than recent events?”

Meliorn looked uncomfortable. “I could not say. Our King has never been one to speak openly of his thoughts, and he has been secluded away with our most powerful sages since our Queen’s passing. Forgive me, but I will say no more.”

“It’s hard to believe that she’s gone,” Simon said. “She always seemed so powerful. So, is there an election, or what? How do you choose her replacement?”

Meliorn refused to tell them exactly how a new Queen was going to be determined, only that it might take some time. Until then, he was trying to keep his nose clean. He did share that not all of the candidates approved of the Fae having close contact with the Mundane world, and since he was the most prominent member of either Court with ties to the outside it was possible that whoever rose to the throne would want to make an example of him.

Izzy and Jace both looked horrified. Alec wished there was something he could do to help, but it was likely that any attempt of theirs would only make things worse for Meliorn.

After dinner, everyone mingled, moving between conversations companionably. Magnus had promised to keep tabs on his father, and Alec was enjoying having all his siblings in one place and not injured or otherwise in some dire straits or life-threatening trouble for once.

If Alec hadn’t been watching Magnus—as he so frequently did—he might not have seen what happened. Magnus was waving his glass in the air to punctuate whatever point he was trying to make to his father when a wisp of blue magic appeared out of nowhere. It wasn’t the familiar deep blue shade that Alec was so familiar with, but a different shade of deep blue altogether. Even as Alec opened his mouth to ask about it, it sank into one of the rings that Magnus wore all the time, making it glow.

Magnus must have felt the tingle and glanced briefly at his hand. When he saw the glowing ring, his eyes widened. With a gesture, his cocktail glass disappeared, and he turned to Catarina.

Catarina had a matching glowing ring on her finger. She looked just as shocked as Magnus. “You said it failed!”

“I thought it did!” Magnus exclaimed. “I followed the instructions to the letter! But there was a delay of nearly a minute, and I presumed that perhaps I’d waited too long, or we’d made some mistake in the brewing process, or maybe we’d got the translation wrong! And then there was—” he broke off abruptly, looking slightly self-conscious.

Catarina made her own glass disappear. “We can’t sit around debating what might or might not have happened when for all we know he needs our help!” She turned to Alec. “Magnus and I have to go. Can you keep Madzie with you until we get back? It shouldn’t take long, but there’s no way of knowing for sure.”

“Of course,” Alec said, wishing he knew what was going on. Magnus was radiating a complex mix of emotions, but he didn’t seem afraid at all, more excited than anything else. “Can you tell me what’s happening?”

Cat gave a short, sharp shake of her head as she knelt in front of Madzie. “I’m sorry, sweetheart, but I have Warlock business to take care of that can’t wait,” she explained, the gentle tone of her voice at odds with the restless energy thrumming almost visibly through her body. “You’ll be okay here with Alec, won’t you?”

Madzie nodded straight away. “Alec, can Max stay the night? We could have a sleepover!”

Alec glanced over to Max with his eyebrows raised. Max nodded happily enough, and Jace didn’t seem averse to the idea either. “Why not?”

Magnus came out of their bedroom looking every inch the powerful Warlock that he was. He snapped his fingers, and a small silver case from his workroom flew into his hand. At some point, while Alec was concentrating on Magnus, Catarina had changed clothes as well. Together they bent over the sliver case, magic swirling about them.

“We should take our leave,” Meliorn said gracefully, extending an arm to Maia. “I’m sure we will see you all again, before too long.”

Alec saw them out and then stood watching his husband, trying not to hover too obviously.

Izzy came over to stand next to Alec, watching avidly. “Are you as curious as I am?”

Jace joined them. “If he’s not, then I certainly am.”

Alec snorted. “Welcome to the joy of watching your friends and family run off willy-nilly without telling you what’s happening.”

Izzy had the grace to look slightly sheepish.

Jace tilted his head. “Yes, but when _I_ do it, it’s because I have a good reason. Right now, I think Magnus and Cat are just trying to be annoying.”

Asmodeus watched the proceedings with unconcealed interest. “My son certainly knows the value of a dramatic display, doesn’t he?”

Alec laughed, remembering his dealings with Asmodeus back when he was trying to get Magnus’ magic back. “I think it’s pretty safe to say that he came by that habit honestly.”

“Does anyone have any idea what it’s about?” Simon asked. “Any clue at all!?”

Madzie and Max got bored with watching Magnus and Catarina communing with a silver box and went out on the balcony together. Not long after, Simon and Izzy wandered off together over to the other side of the lounge, leaving Jace, Asmodeus, and Alec to stand watching the warlocks work their magic. The familiar feel of Magnus’ magic was growing richer and wilder, with Cat’s magic bolstering and supporting it. The air had become so saturated with it that his view of them both had become distorted.

Asmodeus was almost looking wistful.

“Are you alright?” Alec asked him.

“My son tells me that of all the Travellers, I’m the only one who has been recovering any part of who I used to be,” Asmodeus said pensively. “He hasn’t explained why that is, precisely, just suggested that it probably had to do with my existence before my sojourn in this ‘limbo.’” He turned to Alec. “I asked him about our shared past on several occasions, and each time he redirected my enquires. He’s quite skilled, at first I didn’t even notice the deflection until afterwards. When one is looking for it, the technique is rather obvious, of course.”

The air around Magnus and Catarina cycled from blue through green to yellow so quickly that Alec almost didn’t see it. The yellow brightened into gold before being sucked into their matching rings.

“He’s truly alive!” Catarina exclaimed. “Although that’s subject to change once I get my hands on him.”

“He’s in France,” Magnus said barely a second later. “Which makes things easier, since there’s only one place he would have considered placing the anchor.” With a twist of his wrist, he opened a portal.

“Magnus!” Alec called, catching his husband’s attention as he moved towards it. “Do you want to take back-up?”

Magnus flicked a warm glance his way. “That shouldn’t be necessary, Alexander, but thank you. I’ll see you when we get back.” Magnus and Catarina walked through the portal, letting it wink out behind them. The swirling feel of strong magic in the air dissipated.

Madzie and Max came back inside.

“I’m glad _that’s_ over,” Madzie said. “That much magic in one place makes me uncomfortable. Alec, can I have an ice-cream?”

“Yes, okay,” Alec replied. “Max, you want to help her with that?”

“Sure,” Max replied. “I know where Magnus keeps the maple syrup, the special stuff from the magical trees in Canada. It tastes like those delicious Belgian chocolates, and it makes even ordinary vanilla ice-cream taste like the most amazing stuff ever.”

“Don’t use all of it!” Alec called after them. “Unless you want your hair to start strobing rainbow colours next time you have an exam!”

When he turned back, it was to see his father-in-law eyeing him with a frown.

Asmodeus raised his eyebrows. “Don’t think you’re going to get out of this discussion, Alec.”

Jace’s shoulders twitched uncomfortably. “You know what? I have this thing that I wanted to talk to Izzy and Simon about, and since they’re right over there, I thought I might just, you know, go over and talk to them about it. Okay?” He sloped off without a backward glance, leaving Alec to talk to his amnesiac father-in-law about his past as a Greater Demon.

Asmodeus waited. Alec sighed. It was completely unfair that this had to fall to him. On the other hand, perhaps it was unfair to ask Magnus to try and explain the fraught nature of his relationship with Asmodeus to this alternate version of him. Maybe Alec was the only viable choice.

“I don’t know all the details of your history together,” Alec warned, guiding Asmodeus onto the balcony so that their conversation could be a little private. Not that it would stop his siblings from eavesdropping if they wanted to, but it made him feel a bit better since he was talking about Magnus’ private business here. “I do know that his feelings towards you were…complicated.”

Asmodeus gave him a look. “Yes, this much I had gathered for myself, Alexan—Alec.”

“Did he ever tell you why you were in limbo in the first place?”

Asmodeus shook his head slowly. “No, although his ability to give the researcher an exact date and time as to the event led me to the conclusion that he was present when it happened. Given that there were no expressions of overwhelming joy at my return, I have developed one or two theories. None of them quite explain why he would be so willing to open his home to me, though.”

“Right.” Alec blew a breath out his nostrils, wondering how he should put this. “How much do you know about the Angels and the Greater Demons?”

Asmodeus rolled his eyes. “I’m aware that I used to be one of these Greater Demons, yes. I’m aware of how Warlocks come to be, also the origins of Werewolves, Vampires, and Shadowhunters. The Spiral Labyrinth felt that before we Travellers could make informed choices about our futures, we first needed to _be_ informed, a sentiment I find great favour with. Stop pussy-footing around the issue.”

Alec squared his shoulders. “Fine. The realm that you ruled, Edom, was also home to one of the other Greater Demons. Her name was Lilith, and she was known as ‘Mother of all Demons.’ As far as I know, you and Lilith were balanced pretty much equally. Your powers manifested themselves slightly differently, but neither of you had any significant advantage over the other.”

“Okay.”

“Because of some stuff that would take too long to go into, Lilith was in _this_ realm doing her best to resurrect a Shadowhunter that she considered to be her son,” Alec went on. “To do this, she took advantage of another set of unusual circumstances—don’t ask—and took control of my brother and parabatai, Jace.” Alec indicated Jace, who was on the other side of the balcony door and currently pretending he couldn’t see them. “You’ve met him. Now, has anyone explained parabatai to you?”

Asmodeus nodded. “My son explained that you go through a joining ritual which involves the exchange of pieces of each other’s souls.” He sniffed disapprovingly. “It seems a most unwise choice, to make yourself so completely vulnerable to another being, but it’s not my place to say one way or another.”

“There are drawbacks, of course,” Alec admitted. “There are also numerous benefits. My parabatai and I have already experienced far more than most parabatai do in their lifetimes, endured more of the negative aspects than most ever even hear about. Still, if I could go back and choose again, I would choose the same.”

“If you say so,” Asmodeus said, looking doubtful.

“Back to the subject at hand,” Alec said, not really caring about what Asmodeus thought about parabatai, “Lilith had gained a hold over Jace, who as you know holds a piece of my soul. We had been trying to find a way to remove her influence from him without doing him irreparable harm, but we hadn’t had any luck.”

His shoulders twitched, as he remembered how desperate he’d been feeling, how despairing, how certain that after everything they’d been through he was going to lose Jace. “I was pretty upset,” he admitted. “Magnus knew how I felt, and since he couldn’t think of any way to fix my problem himself, he decided to go to the one person he knew who _did_ have the power.”

“Me,” Asmodeus said, face blank.

“Yes. Magnus went to Edom and asked your price; Greater Demons don’t do anything for free, after all. You told him that you would free Jace if Magnus promised to join you in Edom forever.” At Asmodeus’ raised eyebrows, Alec shrugged. “Magnus said once that he was your favourite son. He’s never elaborated, and I haven’t asked. Anyway, Magnus refused. So…” Alec took a deep breath. “So, you demanded his magic.”

Asmodeus eyes flickered, the only reaction that Alec could read. “Did my son agree to pay this price?”

Alec nodded. He didn’t want to look at Asmodeus anymore, so he turned to look out at the chilly winter’s night. “He did. He returned to this realm in time to see Lilith banished back to Edom during an explosion that we thought was the death of a friend of ours, and found me near death.” He gave a self-deprecatory smile. “Lilith had used Jace against me,” he explained. “I knew that he wasn’t himself. I don’t have it in me to kill him, so it wasn’t hard for him to defeat me. If Lilith hadn’t been intent on hurting him as much as possible by making him draw it out, I would already have been dead. As it was, it was a close thing.”

“My son clearly has the full use of his magic,” Asmodeus murmured. “Something must have changed.”

“Before Lilith was banished, she managed to achieve what she had been striving for,” Alec said. “Jonathon Morgenstern had been risen from the dead. Unfortunately for us, he was a psychopath. Not surprising, really, he’d been raised by a psychopath, trained to be one all his life. There are a lot of other details that are less relevant, except that he was going about, here and there, kicking up chaos. Magnus—who had once been one of the most powerful Warlocks in the world—was helpless against it, without his magic.”

Alec shifted uncomfortably. “I tried to be as helpful as I could, but I confess I didn’t really understand what he was going through. I still can’t, I suppose. He seemed to be coping so well, but he was dying inside. It took me too long to realise that his magic was such an integral part of him. I was selfish enough to be _glad_ that we had a chance to grow old together.” Alec snorted. “Right, like a Shadowhunter on the front lines has much likelihood of reaching middle-age, let alone old age. Let alone the times that Magnus and his magic have been all that’s been between us and death. It was a selfish thought.”

“What opened your eyes?”

Alec sighed. “He took a desperate chance to get even a little bit of magic back, and that chance backfired on him enough that he nearly died. I realised then that even if Magnus survived that particular thing, that he wouldn’t have likely made it much longer. He was dying inside every single day. And because I love him, I decided I would do what I had to do to get his magic back.”

Asmodeus closed his eyes, an expression of pain on his face. “Don’t tell me,” he said, holding up a hand. “You decided to petition me to return my son’s magic to him.”

Alec nodded. “As expected, you demanded a price.”

“What was it this time?”

“You told me that I had to break his heart,” Alec said, remembering how awful it had been to have to make that decision. “You told me that I had to break his heart for good. You promised that after I broke his heart, you would give his magic back.” Alec shrugged. “Magnus has loved people and lost them before,” he explained, sounding defensive even to his own ears. “I figured that he’d make it through losing me too. But he needed his magic to be whole, and at least I could do that for him. Even if he hated me, he’d still be around for that.”

Asmodeus looked disgusted, although Alec couldn’t tell if it was because of all the rampant emotionalism he was being exposed to, or because of the actions his past-self had taken. Or both. “Am I to infer that you broke his heart, as instructed?”

“I did,” Alec confirmed. “It went about as well as I thought it would. Afterwards, I tried to concentrate on work. Jonathon Morgenstern was still making trouble, so there was plenty to do. First, he managed to get hold of Morningstar and used it to open a rift between Idris and Edom. Then, he destroyed the sword so that it couldn’t be used to reverse what he’d done.”

Izzy, Jace, and Simon approached, which was all the proof Alec needed that they’d been listening.

“The towers fell, and demons poured through the tear to invade Alicante,” Izzy said, eyes distant. “Each one we killed just respawned in Edom and flew back through the rift. It was never going to stop…it was the end of the world.”

“It would have been,” Alec agreed. “Izzy and I went out there prepared to do what we could to distract the demons long enough for the non-combatants to get to shelter, but we both knew that it was going to be our last fight.”

“And then Magnus was there,” Izzy said. “Making bad jokes, and ripping demons apart with his magic, as though it had never been gone. Like he’d never been without it.”

“I told him that he couldn’t be there,” Alec remembered. “I was terrified that his magic would be ripped away from him again, and I didn’t know if I would be able to go through with giving him up twice. He told me that he knew about the deal I had made, that I didn’t have to worry about you coming between us ever again.” Alec sighed. “It was only moments later that he realised the only way to boost his power enough to hold the rift closed meant that he would need to stay in Edom, forever. So we had to say goodbye anyway.”

“He’s clearly not in Edom,” Asmodeus pointed out.

“It wasn’t long before we heard that Lilith had started gathering an army to destroy him,” Jace said. “We knew we needed to get there to help him, quickly, but we also knew that if we tried, we’d die. We don’t have demon blood, and let’s just say that demonic realms aren’t interested in hosting those of us with angel blood.”

“Alec asked me to turn him into a Vampire so that he could go,” Simon offered.

“Izzy forbade me from doing something so reckless, and then, the moment our backs were turned, ran off to save Magnus all by herself,” Alec said, glaring at his sister.

She tossed her head. “I said the heavenly fire would protect me, and I was right. I thought I could use it to harm Lilith, and I was right there as well.”

“You nearly died,” Alec pointed out. “The heavenly fire nearly burned you up. If Clary hadn’t found a way to get us all down there, and if her rune hadn’t worked to share our angelic blood around, then we would have been exchanging your life for Magnus’. Which…no, Izzy. That’s not okay.”

Izzy glared back at him. “Chances are the heavenly fire would have ended up killing me anyway,” she said. “I wanted my death to have meaning. More meaning,” she said, glancing at Simon.

“Because you wouldn’t have even been in that situation if you hadn’t been shielding me,” Simon said.

Jace rounded on him. “Yes! Why were you even there? We told you not to come!”

“I don’t take orders from you!” Simon said. “And it’s a good thing I did! If I hadn’t, then we might not have been able to save Magnus!”

Alec shook his head. When Clary and Simon had exploded into the Shadow World, he’d tried to make them see that just running off all over the place without knowing what they were doing was making all of their lives much harder.

Neither Clary nor Simon had been interested in listening, and their actions in those last couple of days before Jonathon’s final death showed that they hadn’t changed at all in that regard. Simon ran off and inserted himself into an operation that had been carefully planned out, resulting in Izzy being peppered with shards of Glorious. Clary, having _just_ been given a clear ultimatum by the Angels, went ahead and defied them without even discussing what alternatives might be available with the people closest to her.

Yes, disaster had been averted, but this constant scraping a win by the skin of the teeth and dumb luck wasn’t a workable strategy long term, and if they kept pushing their luck they could end up screwing up big time one day.

Not that he wasn’t grateful for the good that had come from the messes they’d made, but Alec couldn’t help but think that if there had been less running off and more careful planning, then a lot of awful things might never have happened.

Alec reigned his thoughts in. “So, to answer your original question,” Alec said to Asmodeus, “as you can see, you and Magnus didn’t have the best relationship before you lost your memory. And you were in limbo because that’s where he put you. It was the only method he could think of to get you out of his life for good.” He hoped that he was doing the right thing and hadn’t screwed up everything. Magnus might have given him permission to tell his father the truth if the subject ever came up, but that didn’t mean that Alec couldn’t get it wrong.

Asmodeus nodded slowly. “I thought it might be something like that. Now, if you will excuse me, I think I might retire for the evening. I have a lot to think about. Please leave me alone.”

“Okay then,” Alec said, watching him go. He wished he knew what to do. Should he go after Asmodeus, or abide by his stated wish for solitude? He looked helplessly at Izzy, hoping that she would have a better idea, but she just shrugged at him.

“I really hope that doesn’t blow up in your face,” Jace said, not sounding concerned at all.

“Oh my god, you mean Magnus really threw his own father into limbo?” Simon squeaked, looking half horrified and half impressed. “Wow, you people in the Shadow World really do things differently than they did where I was brought up.”

Alec bristled at the implied slight to Magnus. “You know nothing about Asmodeus’ and Magnus’ relationship,” he snapped. “You’re in no position to judge anything.”

“Easy, big brother,” Izzy said, laying a hand on Alec’s arm. “I’m sure Simon didn’t mean to sound like a judgemental asshole.”

“No, no, of course not!” Simon said. “Although, you have to admit that it’s a pretty harsh thing to do.”

“I can’t deal with him right now,” Alec said to Izzy, slashing his hand through the air to indicate that he was cutting off the conversation.

He stalked off to the kitchen to see what Max and Madzie were getting up to. It had been suspiciously quiet over there for long enough to be slightly concerning. As he walked away, he heard Simon say, “Wow, I thought that getting laid on the regular would get that stick out of his ass, but I guess that’s just the way he is naturally.” At which point Alec deliberately tuned them both out.

Max and Madzie had managed to find not only the ice-cream and Magnus’ special maple syrup, but also the raspberry compôte. Going by the state of their bowls and the empty ice-cream container, they’d taken plenty of advantage of their lack of adult supervision.

Alec felt better immediately. “It’s a good thing that you’re not Mundanes,” he said, fighting back an involuntary smile. “I hear that they have something called a sugar-coma.”

“Yeah?” Max said, with the triumphant smirk he always wore when he was going to get away with something. “Then you’re right, it’s a good thing that we’re not Mundanes.” He dropped his spoon back into the empty container. “Have you guys finished talking about all the serious stuff for now? You know, the stuff you think that we’re too young to know about?”

“Yeah, we’re done,” Alec replied. “Come on, you two. Time to get cleaned up. If you can get clean and into bed in under half an hour, I’ll let you borrow Magnus’ tablet to watch a movie on.”

“Yay!” Madzie cheered. She snapped her fingers, and she and Max were instantly clean. “Come on, Max! I want to watch Frozen!”

“Again?” Max sighed long-sufferingly. Madzie gave him a pleading look, and he capitulated. “Fine. But this is the last time.”

Alec turned to survey the rest of the mess they’d left in the kitchen, and wished he’d thought to include cleaning up after themselves in his demands.

v^v^v^v

Not long after Max and Madzie got packed off to bed, Izzy and Simon said their goodbyes. Izzy offered to stay in case Magnus and Catarina came back needing help, but Alec had already had enough of Simon for the night.

“I’ll call you if I need you,” he promised, saying goodbye to them at the door. “But I don’t expect to, so I’ll see you tomorrow.”

That left him alone with Jace, who had made himself comfortable on the couch with a glass of something amber and strong-smelling.

“This stuff of Magnus’ is much better than the stuff you get in a bar,” Jace opened with.

“The stuff that Magnus gets is probably significantly more expensive than what you can just pick up in a bar,” Alec pointed out. He poured out what was left of the red wine into his glass and sat in his usual place on the couch. Magnus’ spot beside him felt glaringly empty. Alec dropped his head back to stare at the ceiling. “What a fucking terrible evening.”

“Hey, it could have been worse,” Jace pointed out.

Alec groaned and lifted his head to glare at him. “Come on, Jace, you know better than to say things like that!”

Jace just grinned. “You want to lay bets about what the emergency Magnus and Cat had to deal with was?”

“No,” Alec growled, letting his head thump back down. He sighed. He wished Magnus would finish whatever it was and come back.

“You are so whipped,” Jace observed.

“Good,” Alec replied shortly.

Jace’s answer was quiet. “Yeah, it really is.”

Alec lifted his head to look at him enquiringly.

Jace shrugged. “Until Magnus came along I didn’t know just how unhappy you were,” he mused. “What kind of parabatai was I, that I didn’t realise that about you? I mean, I knew you weren’t a box of fluffy ducks. Thank the Angel.”

Alec snorted. Jace’s weird aversion to ducks would never not be hilarious. And he was right. Alec had never in his entire life been described as ‘a box of fluffy ducks.’ By _anyone_. At any point.

“It took Izzy opening my eyes to the fact that you were forcing yourself into a marriage of duty to make me take notice, and finally fucking recognise the sustained misery that you had been feeling all along. I thought that it was just the way you were. I mean, you had happy moments, you know? Izzy, and Max, and me, and sometimes when Mom would tell you that you did well. I thought, when I noticed how it was, that _that_ was when you were happy.”

Alec didn’t know what to say. He’d been hiding who he was for longer than he’d known Jace, so he didn’t blame Jace for accepting the façade he’d presented as truth. In fact, until Magnus, until he’d begun to believe that he could have what he wanted and that he wasn’t a deviant, he hadn’t felt truly happy for years. Not since he’d realised how different he was, and that he would never be accepted. He would never be okay. After that, even his happiest moments had been tempered by his need to hide his shame.

“But if your engagement to Lydia was the duty that Izzy insisted it was, and your emotional landscape hadn’t _changed_ so much as _deepened_ , that meant...I didn’t want to accept what that must mean.”

Alec felt a twinge of shame for how he’d treated Lydia. She was far kinder than he deserved in the aftermath of what must have been a profoundly humiliating moment. She still insisted that he wasn’t to blame. Alec was glad that she seemed to be doing well in the Brisbane Institute, and that it wasn’t one of the Institutes that Jonathon had hit on his final rampage.

Maybe once everything calmed down, and the Shadow World was stable, he and Magnus could take a holiday down that part of the world. They could stop in and spend some time with Lydia that wasn’t overshadowed by the demands of trying to run an Institute while dealing with being under the Clave’s magnifying glass, and a brewing Uprising.

“The contrast of how things were then, and how they’ve been since you and Magnus started dating…” Jace shook his head. “Even when things between the two of you were at their worst, even when you’d broken up over that whole Mortal Sword thing, it hasn’t been that bad again since.”

Alec shrugged. All this talk about him and his emotions made him uncomfortable.

Jace sighed. “The happiness you feel is like…like this constant glow of contentment that’s surrounding me all the time. Sometimes it even drowns out the emptiness that losing Clary left me with. Right now, I don’t know how I’d cope without it. So yes, you’re whipped. But you’re so completely, incandescently happy, that I wouldn’t have it any other way.” He snorted. “And it’s not like Magnus isn’t whipped too. Together you guys are so in love it’s almost sickening.”

“Even more sickening than Izzy and Simon?” Alec asked, not bothering to try and hide his smile.

Jace snorted again. “ _That_ romance isn’t going to last. I mean, Simon’s an okay guy. He’s been through a lot, and I kind of respect him. But Izzy’s not going to be happy playing house for long. Personally, I think the whole thing is your fault.”

“Excuse me?” Alec objected, feeling insulted. “I’ve never tried to tell Izzy who she should or shouldn’t date. It’s not like there’s anyone that even comes close to being good enough for her, so if she wants Simon, then she should have him. I’m not going to throw them a party, but I’m also not going to try and break them up.”

“No, I mean it’s seeing how happy you are in a long-term committed relationship that has Izzy wondering what she’s missing out on,” Jace explained.

“That doesn’t make sense,” Alec muttered. “We’re completely different. Just because something works for me, doesn’t mean that it will work for her.”

“It’s something that she’ll have to figure out for herself,” Jace replied, yawning. “Hey, do you mind if I just kip here for the night?”

“Go right ahead,” Alec said absently, still considering the whole Izzy and Simon thing. “I’d offer you a bed, but the kids are using the spare room.”

Jace shifted around, kicking off his footwear and shrugging out of his jacket before lying down lengthways on the sofa. “This is fine; just bring me a blanket or something?”

Alec heaved himself out of his seat and did as instructed, before heading to bed. If Magnus needed him, he could wake him.


	4. Chapter 4

## Chapter four

Alec managed nearly two hours of sleep before Magnus and Catarina arrived back.

He was woken by the feel of Jace’s shock, and the following loud exclamation of, “You’re dead!” got him leaping from his bed. He grabbed the seraph blade that he kept close by and threw himself into the lounge to confront whatever undead nightmare had made its way through Magnus’ wards to threaten his parabatai.

It turned out to be less of an undead nightmare, and more of a surprised looking Warlock. A recognisable Warlock, at that. Accompanied by Magnus and Catarina. Alec lowered his blade.

“Alexander!” Magnus said, looking delighted to see him. “I’d like to introduce you to one of my oldest friends, Ragnor Fell. Ragnor, this is Alexander Lightwood-Bane, Head of the New York Institute, and my husband.”

Alec was suddenly aware that he was only wearing a pair of boxer-shorts—a precaution he’d taken because of Max and Madzie’s presence, thank the Angel. He and Magnus had learned _that_ one the hard way. “Uh, hello. Nice to meet you.”

“Husband?” Ragnor Fell asked incredulously. “A Shadowhunter? A _Lightwood_? Just how long was I incapacitated for?” He glared accusingly at Catarina. “You let him do this?”

Catarina scoffed. “What makes you think Magnus would have taken my advice even if I _wanted_ to change his mind?”

“You were gone _far_ too long, my friend,” Magnus said. “About six months all up, I believe.”

“I’m going to go and put some more clothes on,” Alec said to the room in general, before turning around. His whole body felt warmer than usual.

“Please don’t feel like you need to hurry away on my account,” Catarina teased, wandering over to the drinks trolley. “Wow, Magnus.”

“Openly drooling is unattractive, Catarina,” Magnus responded. “Blondie? What are you doing on my couch?”

By the time Alec re-emerged—feeling a lot less vulnerable in a t-shirt and some sweatpants—everyone was sitting around with drinks, except for Magnus who was at the bar mixing Alec his preferred strawberry daiquiri.

Magnus handed over his glass, leaning up for a kiss. “Come celebrate with us, darling.”

Alec took the glass and kissed him back. “I thought Ragnor died,” he murmured. “Wasn’t he killed by a demon?”

Magnus waved that away. “He was only mostly dead. Luckily, the three of us long ago made preparations for such an eventuality. As soon as Biscuit and Blondie left, I enacted our plan.”

Jace was glowering. “You mean I’ve been feeling guilty about getting one of your oldest friends killed for nothing?”

Magnus raised his eyebrows. “ _Were_ you feeling guilty? I confess I didn’t notice.” He pulled Alec over to their preferred couch and carefully arranged him so that he could drape himself comfortably over his lap. Alec allowed himself to be positioned, taking a sip of his drink. Lovely.

“I suppose that an infatuation with this fellow makes your appearance at my cottage with Shadowhunters in tow a little more understandable,” Ragnor mused, swirling the liquid in his glass in a circular motion. He took a sip and grimaced. “Does the lack of demanding red-head mean that you managed to locate the Book of the White?”

“Yes, but I’ll have you know that my feelings for Alec weren’t the only reason that I was helping Clarrisa,” Magnus replied indignantly. “At the time, Valentine was a genuine threat, and it seemed to me that having someone who knew him as well as Jocelyn did on hand could only be beneficial to the cause.”

“Well, whatever you did must have worked,” Ragnor drained his glass. “Much as I’ve enjoyed this little catch-up and this…delightful…horse piss that you’ve tried to disguise as brandy, my wards must all be getting a bit tatty by now. I should really go and do something about that.”

“Ah,” Magnus said, casting a desperate look in Catarina’s direction.

“Don’t look at me, Magnus,” she said. “You were the one who decided the ritual didn’t work. You were the one who was so sure that Ragnor was dead. _You_ explain to him about the dismantling of his prized library.”

“You _what_?”

“I thought I’d waited too long,” Magnus explained. “You didn’t react at all, and I wondered if perhaps we’d brewed the potion wrong, or we mistranslated the text, or—unlikely though it is—maybe I mispronounced one of the words. I initially followed the usual steps—brought all of your effects to my place and closed down your cottage—but then I was visited by your ghost, Ragnor! That proved my fears correct, and it made me rather angry with you for leaving me so abruptly, so rather than store your things away where I would have to deal with them again later, I...”

Ragnor rolled his eyes. “Just tell me without all the dramatics, Magnus. What did you do with the collection of rare books and artefacts that it took me over six centuries to accumulate?”

Magnus sighed. “I donated the lot to the Spiral Labyrinth.”

“Oh.” Ragnor tilted his head to one side. “Well, that’s fine. I have a standing agreement with the Great Library, which includes clarification of ownership after an assumed death. Provided I present myself in person within two calendar centuries and can pass the tests to prove that I’m me, that is.”

Magnus sat up straighter, digging his elbow into Alec’s stomach. “What?”

Ragnor looked amused. “You mean, _you_ haven’t come to a similar agreement? My, my, Magnus. How positively reckless of you.”

“If you already have an arrangement with the Spiral Labyrinth, one that you trust, why were you always so insistent that your things should never fall into their hands?”

“Because I know you all too well, my friend. I’ve seen the way you react to the deaths of your dear ones, and I had no wish for my belongings to be consumed in some enormous bonfire of spiteful mourning.”

Magnus sniffed rudely but relaxed back into Alec without otherwise responding.

Catarina hid a yawn behind her hand. “I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’m more than ready to get some sleep. Ragnor, are you coming with me or staying with Magnus and Alec?”

“I believe I’ll come and stay with you,” Ragnor responded with alacrity. “Lodging with newlyweds has never been something I’ve enjoyed.”

“I don’t want you to stay here anyway!” Magnus insisted petulantly. Alec didn’t believe him. Judging by the looks on their faces, neither did anyone else.

“Does this mean that I can get some sleep?” Jace asked grumpily. “Warlocks jabber worse than children.”

Alec decided not to tell his parabatai that his hair had suddenly become a decidedly fetching shade of blue. It reminded him of the colour of Magnus’ magic. Jace would surely find out on his own.

v^v^v^v

It wasn’t until after Alec and Magnus had seen all their overnight guests home in the morning and Asmodeus was uncharacteristically absent for breakfast that Alec remembered to tell Magnus about the conversation the night before.

“Thank Ruschmann for that,” Magnus said fervently. “What a shame I happened to be otherwise occupied and therefore missed the whole thing. How did he take it?”

Alec shrugged. “I have no idea. He said he had things to think over and just went back to his rooms.”

Magnus frowned. “Hopefully he doesn’t plan to just get his memories back and pick up where he left off.”

“I don’t really mind him like this,” Alec admitted. “It’s not really optimal, though, is it? Just waiting and watching for the day his memories return.”

“Who’s to say they ever will?” Magnus responded flippantly. At Alec’s look, he sighed. “No, no, you’re right, of course. Hmmm. If it’s going to happen, then it might as well happen sooner rather than later. Perhaps we should ensure it happens in a controlled environment.”

“You mean before he gathers more possible ammunition against us?” Alec asked.

“I’m not sure that really matters,” Magnus replied. “My father was always a master at exploiting any weaknesses he could perceive, and he was also excellent at spotting them. On the other hand…”

Alec waited.

“Since it happened, I’ve thought of several other methods he could have utilised to orchestrate a break-up between us,” Magnus said. “At the time we had some issues that we’d been ignoring rather than dealing with. His bargain with you…the open nature of it…it just wasn’t really his style.”

“What does that mean?” Alec asked.

“I’m not sure,” Magnus responded. “It could mean one of several things. Nothing I’ve come up with explains all of his actions.”

Alec shook his head, fondly. “You know, Asmodeus said something very similar last night? He’s built up a couple of theories about _your_ actions, but none of them answers all _his_ questions.”

Magnus narrowed his eyes. “What are you trying to say to me, Alexander?”

“Nothing,” Alec lifted his hands in the air in a placating gesture. “Just an observation, that’s all.”

Magnus’ expression smoothed out. “Oh, who am I kidding. I’m too elated to be properly annoyed this morning. Ragnor is alive, Alec! Alive!”

“Yeah, how did that come about exactly?” Alec asked.

“We’d found a ritual,” Magnus said. “It was a rather complicated thing, and its efficacy was never guaranteed. There were too many variables, not the least which, was that we knew our translation was imperfect, at best. Since it was always going to be a final resort, possible side effects weren’t our biggest concern. So… When a Shax demon ripped Ragnor open, I waited just long enough to get Biscuit and Blondie out of there and then completed the final step of the ritual.”

Alec nodded, remembering what Magnus had said the night before. “You thought it failed?”

Magnus sighed. “I didn’t know what to expect,” he admitted. “When I couldn’t see any difference, I just followed the steps that we’d planned out and activated his _Sommeil Fou_.” At Alec’s confused look, he rolled his eyes. “I suppose you could call it a personal dimensional capsule. It’s a complicated piece of magic that Ragnor, Cat, and I designed together for purposes such as these, but its performance in an emergency has been largely untested. I was hopeful, rather than expectant. When he showed up in my living room as a ghost, I felt sure that meant that it hadn’t worked and he’d passed on.”

Alec blinked. “You saw his ghost? Is that something Warlocks do? Haunt people after they’re dead?”

Magnus waved his hands in the air in sweeping gestures. “Who knows what ways a Warlock’s residual magic might choose to express itself after their death? Of course, given that Ragnor turned out to not be dead then it obviously wasn’t his ghost that was visiting me.” He frowned thoughtfully. “I wonder what it was?”

“Good morning,” Asmodeus said from the door.

Alec twisted around in his seat to greet him. “Good mor—” the rest of the word died in his mouth.

Asmodeus was dressed for maximum emotional defence. He was wearing an outfit that Magnus himself might have put together on the days when he wanted to remind everyone that he was an all-powerful badass Warlock and that he didn’t care what anyone thought.

“Magnus, I want you to take me to Edom,” Asmodeus commanded. The performance was only slightly ruined by the way he twiddled with his cufflinks, a nervous tick that Alec had seen Magnus use more than once. He should probably be worried that he found that endearing.

“Edom was destroyed,” Alec said helpfully, wondering what Asmodeus was leading up to.

Asmodeus gave a haughty sniff. “My research has indicated that a Greater Demon’s well-being is inextricably tied to his realm,” he asserted. “ _Mapping Demonic Energies_ states that while inhabiting other planes, most demons are unable to access the greatest of their powers. It goes on to hypothesise that only by killing demons in the realm that fuels them can one be sure to vanquish them forever. Otherwise, their essence reforms and the Demon respawns.”

Alec already knew that, of course. It was the reason why the rift Jonathon opened into Edom had been such a terrible thing. It meant a continuous flow of Demons. Every Demon they killed just respawned back in Edom and immediately headed back for another go. Such an onslaught might be contained for a time, but would ultimately have meant the end of the world.

Asmodeus continued talking. “As it has been observed that my magic _is_ regenerating, then it logically follows that Edom must still be there, must still be connected to me.”

Magnus straightened to his full height, dialling up the natural commanding presence he so often displayed when dealing with threats. “Given what Alec told you last night, why on earth do you think I would be willing to take you directly into the seat of your power?”

Asmodeus lifted his chin. “Because you would rather it happen under your auspices, and therefore your control, than have me find my own way there.”

Magnus nodded once. “True. Very well, I agree to take you to Edom.” He raised a hand as Asmodeus took a step forward. “Not today, however. The events of last night and the magic I expended have left me slightly depleted, and I have no intention of risking a trip to Edom while not at my full power. I will also be asking at least three of my Warlock friends to accompany us.” His eyes narrowed, his earlier playfulness gone. “Take it or leave it, Father.”

Alec shifted slightly in his seat as his body reacted to Magnus’ ramping up his authority. Unfortunately, there wouldn’t be enough time to deal with it before his morning meeting at the Institute. Maybe Magnus would be willing to stop by for lunch again. It shouldn’t be too hard to convince him to try a little more ‘afternoon delight.’

v^v^v^v

Since the integrated patrols had begun, Alec had limited the amount of time he allowed himself to hover in the Ops area, since a helicopter Institute Head wasn’t conducive for positive morale. He still went over each of the Patrol Logs with a fine-tooth comb, focusing on areas where the reports differed. He hoped to gain the insight needed to assist Jace in fine-tuning their training strategies to take advantage of the many new skills that the Institute had available to them.

Things between Magnus and Asmodeus had warmed up slightly from that distinctly chilly morning when Asmodeus asked to be taken to Edom. Magnus had started talking Asmodeus through the mechanics of using his magic.

“Is that wise?” Alec asked.

Magnus shrugged. “As his system becomes more saturated, then it will become more and more necessary for him to have conscious control. That was one reason why it was so important to get the difficult revelations out of the way now. The last thing we need is a fully powered Greater Demon with no control of himself, reacting emotionally. I’m not sure even my wards would be able to handle it.”

“Who are you taking to Edom with you?” Alec asked. “Catarina and Ragnor, I suppose? Who is the third?”

Magnus frowned. “Both Catarina and Ragnor declined my invitation, so I’ll just have to make do with Lorenzo.”

Alec’s eyebrows rose. “Lorenzo? Lorenzo Rey? Lorenzo Rey, who was recently turned into a lizard by the father who you plan to return to his seat of power?”

Magnus’ smirk was a little bit evil. “Lorenzo Rey, the High Warlock of the city that I, a registered Warlock, reside in? Why, Alec, didn’t you know it’s part of a High Warlock’s duties to provide their constituents with support when dealing with their demonic parents?”

Alec shook his head. “One day, you’ll both stop trying to wind each other up.”

“Today is not that day,” Magnus intoned, looking at Alec expectantly. When Alec didn’t respond, he sighed mournfully. “So much that you’ve missed out on.”

Given the quite reasonable concerns about Asmodeus’ reaction to Edom, Alec was a bit annoyed that Magnus categorically refused to take him along too.

“But what about the lingering effects of Clary’s rune?” Alec asked. “Remember when I blew up a tablet? Doesn’t that mean that I still have some kind of access to Warlock magic?”

“You might be right,” Magnus admitted. “However, you might be wrong, and I have no intention of endangering your life on a ‘might.’ Your life is needlessly risked far too often already, Alexander.”

Alec folded his arms across his chest. “Well, if it’s so ‘needlessly risky’ then why are _you_ going?”

“You _know_ why I’m going. And at least we know the _landscape_ isn’t going to try and kill me as soon as I arrive.”

Alec sighed. “I don’t like it. You should have more than just Lorenzo to watch your back. I would probably be fine.”

“No.”

Magnus refused to be moved from his stance, and the next day when Alec talked about it with Izzy and Jace, he discovered that he didn’t have any support there either.

“Magnus can take care of himself,” Izzy said, rolling her eyes at him. “Now that Lilith isn’t around to plot his death, he’ll be fine.”

“It’s not like Asmodeus was trying to kill him even when he _did_ have all his memories,” Jace reminded him.

“That was before Magnus deliberately threw him into limbo,” Alec pointed out.

Izzy sighed. “What exactly do you plan to do if Asmodeus gets his memories back and immediately tries to incinerate Magnus? Lilith already made it clear that adamas weapons aren’t really all that effective in Edom. Either Magnus will be fine, and your presence not required; or Magnus will be destroyed, with nothing you can do to stop it. Once again, your presence is not required.”

“What if Asmodeus imprisons him or something?” Alec asked.

Izzy’s eyebrows rose. “Why are you even asking questions that you already know the answer to? Magnus is a big boy, he knows how to take care of himself. Just let him do what he needs to do without you looming over him and distracting him.”

Alec sighed. “I’m not very good at letting the people I love walk into danger without me.”

“We know,” Jace said.

Hearing a familiar swishing sound, Alec reached out and caught the fire message that came whipping through the air towards him. It was from a Kalda Furie, the High Warlock of Ottawa, and it informed him that they’d come across what appeared to be one of Valentine’s secret bases.

Ottawa had been one of the Institutes that Jonathon had wiped out, and the Clave presence there was currently mostly made up of young and inexperienced Shadowhunters and what admin staff Idris could spare.

Given that there wasn’t much of a rapport between the newcomers and the local Downworld leadership, it perhaps wasn’t all that unusual for them to contact Alec with this information. Clave response to Downworlder requests for assistance had never been a fast process, right now it was practically glacial.

Alec looked at his siblings. “Want to go and raid one of Valentine’s secret bases?”

v^v^v^v

Kalda was right, the place was one of Valentine’s hidey-holes. One of his more personal and private ones, given the size and scope. It was a small underground bunker, ringed with angelic runes for hiding. The runes were probably replenished frequently while Valentine was still alive. Now that they’d been left for a while their power had started to wane.

Even better, it seemed that this particular bolt hole was where Valentine liked to stash some of his paperwork.

“Why even write all of this down?” Izzy asked, stacking the numerous journals they’d found into boxes for transportation. The books were all rune-locked with blood protections, which might have been an issue if Izzy didn’t have a stockpile of Clary’s blood that would do the trick.

“Megalomania?” Alec replied, looking around to see if there were any signs that they’d missed something. He was already planning the best way to word the report he was going to have to write about what they’d found there. “Jace, I’ll leave you to make sure that we get everything. Make sure to lock things up tight behind you, I’ll want to send another team by in a month or two just to check again.”

“Sir, yes, sir!” Jace said with a mocking salute.

Before taking the portal back to New York, Alec took the time to thank Kalda personally for her help.

“You’re the only Institute that we can be reasonably sure isn’t led by a covert Circle member,” Kalda said frankly.

Alec winced. It was a fair point. Since the Consul had been discovered to have been in Valentine’s back pocket, the continued suspicion of the Downworld was a reasonable response. The Clave had tried to take a harder line in the wake of those revelations, with Maryse’s deruning and exile being one example. However, since the Clave tended to keep its inner workings a secret from the rest of the Shadow World, it wasn’t shocking that they were sceptical that any real change had been made.

In all honesty, Alec wouldn’t be confident betting money on it either. The Clave had really shot themselves in the foot with the way they’d handled Valentine and the Circle the first time around.

Alec arrived back in the Institute just in time to witness Penmount being forcibly escorted inside by her own patrol group. When she saw Alec, her face twisted briefly in hatred before smoothing out into a blank mask.

Alec turned to Underhill with an eyebrow raised.

“We’ve got that proof you wanted,” Underhill said with a sigh. “One of my security team, Clara Blauwald, caught an outgoing message sharing details of a current mission that could have compromised the safety of high-ranking members of the Institute.”

Letting her co-conspirators know about the discovery of Valentine’s base, no doubt. “Where was the message being sent?”

Underhill shook his head. “As far as we can ascertain, it’s the first step of a relay. I’ve woken up my two best technicians, and they’re working on it. I’ll let you know when we have anything useful.”

Alec nodded. He wasn’t surprised, but he was a little disheartened. Still, going by the glares Penmount got as she was marched towards the cells, there weren’t many who sympathised with her. Either that or they were pretty good actors.

Unfortunately, Penmount’s arrest meant that Clave would be drawn to the discovery of Valentine’s base a little sooner than Alec would have liked. It would have been nice to be able to look over everything thoroughly before the Clave got their hands on it, but that plan was down the drain now.

Since that was the case, the best strategy would be to make sure the report made it as far up the chain as possible right away. Alec smirked to himself as he marked the notification with the code that would ensure that Jia Penhallow would have it on her desk by the end of the day.

Given her insistence on poking her nose into the New York Institute’s business, he’d taken to copying her into several of his day-to-day matters. It was entirely possible that she’d see another communication from him and just shove it to one side, to be dealt with later.

v^v^v^v

Penmount’s arrest ended up turning into a bigger mess than Alec had been expecting. Rather than the small group of disaffected Shadowhunters that disliked Alec’s efforts of integrating the Shadow World together, it quickly became apparent that he’d uncovered an illicit splinter group that appeared to have incorporated the remaining undiscovered Circle members. Unlike Valentine’s group, there would be no easily identifiable runes to give them away.

Unfortunately, the data relay that Penmount had been messaging was set up in such a way as to make the identification of the recipient/s very difficult. The final destination was a server in Bengaluru that was then manually accessed. It was the electronic version of a dead drop, with no surveillance of the area and therefore no way to make a record of who had been picking up the info. Penmount’s arrest was too public for any kind of sting operation to be successful.

At least they knew of the groups’ existence now, which was more than they had before.

Jia Penhallow came to escort Penmount to the Gard herself, accompanied by three Shadowhunters from Alicante. Alec listened to her thanks for his vigilance with a straight face. That much was expected. What was not expected was what came next.

Jia looked down her nose at him. “Given our current personnel problems and the news of this covert group operating within our society, the Council has decided—in emergency session—that for the time being any assets of Valentine’s that are discovered are to come under your authority.”

Accustomed as he was to dissecting the meaning of the Clave’s decrees and then working out ways to simultaneously follow his orders to the letter and also achieve what he wanted, Alec didn’t take long to decipher that particular order. The Clave wished to test him, test his Institute.

Some within the Council would be only too keen to see him fail, of course. But there were also more liberal thinkers trying to steer the Clave towards inclusion rather than the isolationism that they’d operated under for so long.

“Of course, Consul,” Alec said, mind racing over the implications and possibilities. “We’ll endeavour not to disappoint.”

“See that you don’t.” Penhallow left with her prisoner.

It might be a test, but it was also an opportunity. Alec planned to take it with both hands.

He immediately summoned the trusted mini-council that he’d put together to help him run the Institute. He called Magnus, asking for his presence too. Now that Magnus was no longer the High Warlock, Alec could ask for his assistance without it becoming a political mess.

It did mean that he had to deal with Lorenzo for anything official, but then, since Clary’s binding rune he’d found Lorenzo a lot easier to get along with. He’d asked Magnus if it was an expected side-effect, but Magnus hadn’t been able to give him an answer. He did agree that it most likely didn’t hurt matters.

When everyone that he’d called had gathered, he told them gravely that Christmas was cancelled.

“It’s like all your childhood dreams come true,” Jace said with a snort, breaking the silence. Izzy laughed softly.

Alec let the grin break over his face. “I _told_ you that you would regret calling me a grinch.”

“Of all the pop-culture available, this is what you recognise,” Magnus mused, looking mildly entertained.

“Come on, we need to get on top of this,” Alec ordered, although he was still smiling. “This cache is going to be hot property; we don’t want to give anyone a chance to steal it from us.”

“Alec, I’ll need two of my assistants taken off patrol,” Izzy said, immediately making plans. “We need to work through the stuff we found as quickly as possible, get everything logged and recorded. Once that’s been done then the physical items become less valuable.”

Alec nodded. “I’ve been given carte blanche to deal with this information how I want,” he reminded them. “We need to decide the best way to proceed with the knowledge we find. Do we suppress it in the hope that other disaffected Shadowhunters don’t use the information, or do we publish it far and wide, make sure everyone knows all the sordid details?”

“The Clave tried to clamp down on any mention of the Circle after the First Uprising,” Jace pointed out. “It ended up being more of a help to Valentine and his goals than a hindrance. I vote that we publish.”

Alec winced. “There might be stuff in there about you, Jace.”

Jace stared at him, jaw set stubbornly. “I know. And obviously, I would prefer not to have the details of my upbringing made common knowledge for everyone to gawk over. But this is bigger than my feelings.”

“What about Clary?” Izzy asked. “He probably had plans for her too. Letting all of that out for everyone to see might bring her into more danger.”

Jace’s shoulders twitched. “She’s already in danger. If there are any signs of overt interest in her, we can deal with the situation then.”

“I can discuss matters with Lorenzo,” Magnus offered. “There might be more we can do to safeguard her. I would be willing to help fund a protection detail if it comes to that.”

“Thank you,” Alec nodded. “Hopefully that won’t be necessary. Right now, we can’t be sure what we’ll find, what weaknesses he was planning to exploit. It’s entirely possible that by publishing this information, the Clave will come under attack. If that happens—in fact, even if it doesn’t—elements in the Clave might try to hold us accountable. We need to be aware of this before any decisions are made.”

Alec saw the same conflict on his fellow Shadowhunters’ faces as he was feeling. The instinct to protect the Clave, protect Idris, was strong. It was an instinct that had been instilled in him as a child. But he’d learnt over the last few months that what was best for Idris wasn’t necessarily what was best for the Shadow World.

Alec knew what his choice would be. “Jonathon Shadowhunter asked Raziel for power to protect the world from Demons,” he said, feeling the certainty of what he was saying deep within himself. “Not for glory, or so that he could be held above those he was protecting. A big part of me wants to protect Idris, but Idris…” He shook his head. “Idris has protections the rest of the world lacks. I refuse to limit myself, my mission, to what is best for Idris. That kind of thinking is what has kept the Shadow World divided all this time.”

Izzy gave him a proud look. “I agree. The safety of Idris is no more important than the safety of the Spiral Labyrinth, or the Praetor Base.”

Jace and Underhill both nodded.

Magnus beamed at them. “This generation of Shadowhunters continues to amaze and delight me. If you decide to go forward with this plan, every effort of mine that I can give will be put towards it. You know that if you tell the Clave your plans, they will rescind their order and make releasing Valentine’s knowledge an act of treason.”

“Which is why we have to act fast,” Alec agreed. “Izzy, you can have as many people as you think you need. I suggest that you take advantage of our new Deputy Initiative and sift through the personnel records to find people who have the right skills to join you. Magnus, given the delicacy of this operation and the need for secrecy, I’d like you to do whatever you think is best to safeguard them and their project until we can release the information that we gain.

“When we’ve recorded, logged, and copied everything, I’ll want at least five back-up copies taken and hidden in various locations. As soon as that’s done, we present what we’ve got to the Shadow World.”

Underhill and Alatini looked a little overwhelmed, but Jace and Izzy were both fired up with enthusiasm. His siblings had always liked railing against authority, and this was practically waving their naked asses at the Clave and daring them to take their best shot.

“They’re going to crucify us,” Underhill muttered.

Jace and Izzy turned to reply, but Alec beat them to it. “Yes, they are,” he admitted. “I fully expect that this action will see me demoted at best, de-runed at worst. I’ll do my best to shield the rest of you; I’ll make it clear in the documentation that you were ordered to take these actions, but the Clave isn’t actually stupid. There will inevitably be repercussions for you as well.”

The sound of Magnus slapping his palms down on the table was a sharp retort. “If the Clave tries to take punitive action against those here for holding up the stated mission of the Accords—which, I’ll remind you, is the shared responsibility of _all_ factions of the Shadow World—then they will have me to answer to. Me and every ally that I can convince to act. I will _not_ see you being made into a scapegoat, Alexander. Nor the rest of you either.”

“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” Alatini said. “The Clave is currently not in a position to be making unpopular choices, and by making Valentine’s information public, we’ll be increasing that pressure. Also, at this point, we don’t actually have any idea what we’re going to find. Valentine was nuts, we all agree on that. We may yet discover that this whole bunker was where he was storing his family’s secret tomato sauce recipe.”

If there was a prize for synchronised eyebrow-raising, Alec’s Council would have won it.

Alatini shrugged defensively. “I know it’s not probable, but it _is_ possible. My point is, let’s not start making plans for nuclear war before we check the armoury. We could find anything from super-soakers to core-crackers.”

Alec made a mental note to find out what a super-soaker was. “You have a point. We should find out what we have before making hard and fast plans on what we should do with it. First, can anyone think of anything that we’ve overlooked?”

He looked around. No one had anything to say. “Right. Izzy, make your personnel choices and get the names to Jace. Jace, I want you to reshuffle the patrol schedules so that Izzy has who she needs. Once you’ve got that worked out, double-check it with Underhill. Alatini, you’re going to be our official project head. I want you to oversee everything to do with the information gathering as well as the bunker safety/security. That will also mean that anyone who wants to target the information is going to be aiming at you.”

“Thanks for that,” Alatini said dryly.

Alec leaned forward. “Do _not_ go anywhere unless you’re accompanied by someone on Underhill’s approved list until this matter is taken care of. Magnus, I know that you have that Traveller issue to deal with. I would be grateful if you could recommend one of Lorenzo’s people—not one of the Deputies—for me to request as a back-up in your absence. Izzy, you still have the Traveller research, along with your duties as weapons-master. I want you to delegate as much of the organisational part of that as possible to Jace. And Jace…”

Jace was grimacing, but not arguing. “I get it. I’ll be a general go-between and paperwork ninja.” He sighed. “I hate paperwork.”

“I know,” Alec said sympathetically. “Look on the bright side, whenever you feel cooped up, you can do an impromptu training exam.”

“A what?”

“It’s something I’ve been thinking of implementing,” Alec explained. “We’re expected to put in five to ten training hours each week outside of our usual duties for maintenance of our fighting skills. My recent inspections have shown that most of our people are falling into a rut rather than mixing things up.”

Jace shook his head. “That’ll get them killed.”

“Exactly,” Alec agreed. “My plan is to have semi-frequent, tournament-style training sessions. They’ll be on the schedule, but the participants will be randomly selected. No two sessions will go the same. The idea is for everyone to get practice fighting everyone else, not just their buddies, and for them to practice fighting styles and weapons that they might not have picked up since training. Until we get it set up though, I want you to have ‘irregular’ training sessions. Just pull in anyone who’s not on duty and give them an hour-long workout.”

As expected, Jace thought that idea was great and started coming up with ideas on the spot. Alec left him to it.

v^v^v^v

Two days into their newly frantic schedule, Izzy sent Alec a message marked ‘URGENT’. It had two files attached, so Alec opened the first one curiously.

It was some of Valentine’s records on his experiments with Angelic blood. As they’d come to expect from Valentine’s private notes, there were ramblings mixed in with more scientific notations.

It made for sinister reading. It was clear, by the manner he was talking about them, that Valentine had known where to find Jocelyn and Clary all along. His plans were convoluted though, and he’d found ways to use Jocelyn’s paranoia to his own advantage. He’d stationed people in Clary’s schools, keeping a close eye on her development.

Valentine had initially intended for his daughter to be a control subject for the different training methods he was trialling with Jace and Sebastian. Later he was going to use her as a breeding option—for either or both of them.

There was more than one long rambling discourse on the effects of the more potent blood and the differences between the Angel blood and the Demon blood, but also the similarities he noticed between his two ‘sons’. He even contemplated at length about experiments he’d done based around the bloodlines of his followers. Valentine had studied the differences between the offspring of those who’d chosen their partner based on attraction and those who submitted to arranged marriages and speculated on possible biological reasons for the attraction they felt.

His conclusions inevitably circled back around to the angel blood that they held and how it made them superior to both other part-humans, and humans too. There were some rambling regrets that he’d dosed Jace with Angel blood rather than Demon, but in general, Valentine seemed to think that his dynastic plans had great merit. By joining his own bloodline back to the Herondales’ and adding the Angel blood and Demon, he fully expected to produce the closest thing to a full Angel that the Nephilim had ever seen.

That’s where the first file cut off. Alec swallowed hard and opened the next one.

These entries were dated years later. Valentine had decided on a plan. He intended to allow/encourage Clary and Jace to produce children until a female was conceived, at which point Valentine would enact one of several different plans he was concocting, depending on the circumstances.

He intended to ensure that Lilith’s blood was introduced to the foetus so that the girl-child produced would have the blood of both Angels and Demons. The girl-child would be taken from her parents and raised by Valentine, groomed to be Sebastian’s wife.

The resulting offspring would be the birth of a new race of Shadowhunters, a race that would rule over the Shadow World, with Valentine himself guiding their steps.

It made Alec feel sick to read it. His stomach sank when he realised why Izzy ensured that he saw it. Jace needed to know about this, and Alec was the best one to tell him.

Looking back, Alec couldn’t help but see how Valentine’s theories on the attraction Jace and Clary would feel because of their shared blood had played out exactly as he had expected them to. The way Jace and Clary had so instantly been drawn to each other, their near obsession, the instant trust. To know that it was something that Valentine had engineered, something that he’d counted on to fulfil his sick and twisted plans…

Alec sighed. There was no easy way to handle this. Jace needed to know before this information could be spread far and wide. It might even change Jace’s mind about their plans going forward.

Magnus was still two days away from his trip to take Asmodeus to Edom. Perhaps Alec should invite Jace over to their place, so they could have this discussion in a safe place. A safe place that was well stocked with booze.

Jace arrived, looking concerned, just as Alec was getting ready to text an invitation. “What’s wrong? I can feel that something’s wrong.” His hand rested lightly over the spot where the parabatai rune was.

Alec sat back down. “Izzy sent me… There’s some stuff about you in Valentine’s journals. About his long-term goals, and about the reasoning behind some of his choices.”

Jace set his jaw. “Tell me.”

Alec shook his head. “Not here. Come over tonight, have dinner. I’ll make sure Magnus stocks up on that cognac you like so much, and I’ll ask him to have a hangover cure ready for the morning.”

“It’s _that_ bad.”

Alec nodded.

“Fine.” Jace spun on one heel, exiting the office.

v^v^v^v

Alec waited until after they’d eaten to start the discussion, hoping that, since the resultant drinking would be happening on a full stomach, Magnus would be able to ensure there was no danger of death or dismemberment by stupidity or by alcohol poisoning.

As expected, Jace wasn’t thrilled to discover that Valentine had planned for his and Clary’s instant infatuation. Had worked towards it before they had even been born.

“How can I be sure anything I feel for her is real?” Jace complained, after draining his glass. “The moment I _spoke_ to her, I was drawn to her. I’ve never felt a connection like that before. The closest I’ve ever come to it was that time when it was just Alec and me, alone against a whole pack of Raveners. Now I find out it was a trick?”

Magnus shrugged, topping-up his drink with a twirl of his fingers. “It’s not that shocking, surely? As soon as I discovered the link you both had to Ithuriel, I suspected that to be a contributing factor to your fiery romance.”

Alec turned to look at him. “You did? Why didn’t you tell me about it?”

Magnus raised an eyebrow. “It was just a theory, and I couldn’t see any way to prove or disprove it. It seemed to me that there was no point in bringing it up unless it became an issue.” He looked towards Jace, now staring mournfully into his glass. “Does it really matter to you one way or another?”

“Yes!” Jace replied. “I thought that we were soulmates, you know? That we were fated to be together, brought together by a higher power. Made for each other, designed to be each other’s perfect compliment. And it turns out that we _were_ destined and brought together, but the higher power was _Valentine_! How can I trust that what I feel is my own doing, and not something he orchestrated? Just another thing that he trained me for?”

Alec grimaced. “There’s no such thing as fated soulmates, Jace. And if there were, you wouldn’t want one. You hate even being told what shoes to wear.”

Jace stared at him. “What are you talking about? Of _course_ there’s such thing as fated soulmates. It’s…it’s…romantic! The ultimate romantic connection! You don’t think that you and Magnus are meant to be?”

Magnus shook his head. “Oh, Blondie, no. What Alec and I have…we’re not fated, or destined. And he’s right, there’s nothing romantic about your choices being made for you by a third party, no matter who that party might be.”

“But you’re the most sickeningly in love people I know! How can you think that you’re not soulmates!”

“We’re two highly compatible people who met at a time when we were both wanting the same thing,” Magnus explained. “I would have thought that the ups and downs we’ve experienced would be enough proof of that. There was an instant attraction, of course. It then developed into feelings that I’ve never experienced before, not with anyone. I’m the happiest I’ve been in my long life, and losing Alec would be devastating, but I’ve never considered us to be soulmates.”

Jace looked nonplussed. “That’s…I always thought...”

“Anything that involves predestination removes any semblance of choice,” Magnus pointed out. “Even if you _think_ you’re the one choosing, how can you be when it was already chosen for you? It’s almost like extremely advanced roofies. No more your choice than if you’d been dosed with a love potion.”

Alec shrugged. “Think of it as an arranged marriage by a different name. Don’t get me wrong, arranged marriages are fine, so long as everyone is consenting, aware of what’s going on and what’s expected. But they’re not inherently romantic.” He remembered what it had been like to stand at the altar with Lydia, moments away from signing his life away. How absolutely freeing it had been to realise that he could choose.

And he had. He’d walked down that aisle and kissed Magnus, burning all his bridges at once. For the first time in his life, he finally felt free, felt more like himself than he ever had before. He’d faced everyone knowing that for better or worse he’d just publicly made a statement that could never be recanted.

Jace gaped. “But you risked everything, your standing with the Clave, your opportunity to run the Institute, for love!”

Magnus gave him a pitying look. “We’re not in a romance novel, Blondie. Those are _fiction_. We weren’t in love. We had a strong physical connection, and despite our disparate backgrounds, mutual respect. There was compatibility there that we both recognised. With Alec, I felt open to possibilities that I had closed myself off from.

“When he informed me of his plan to irrevocably tie his life to a person for whom he would never feel attraction, to gain approval from an institution as capricious as the _Clave_ …it made me desperately sad. Not only for what I might miss out on, but because I could see that living such a life would inevitably crush someone like Alec. He wears his integrity on his sleeve, and that marriage would be living a public lie.”

Maybe Alec should have discussed this with Jace a while ago. Who knew that Jace, serial womaniser, had been reading romance novels? Although, given that Maryse had banned them from the New York Institute when she caught Izzy reading one, perhaps Jace’s familiarity with them wasn’t such a surprise.

“Magnus and I hadn’t even been on a date,” Alec pointed out. “I wasn’t risking everything for _him_ , I risked everything for a chance to be me, to explore that side of myself that I had always thought was so shameful. Magnus… I’ll admit, he was the tipping point. I had a moment of clarity when I saw him standing in the doorway. I could continue forward on a path that only ever made me miserable, or I could take a chance.” He shrugged. “It turned out that he was even more incredible than I already thought he was, and he thought I was incredible too. But we’re not soulmates.

“When Asmodeus made me promise to break his heart as payment for giving his magic back, I did it, because Magnus’ magic is a part of him. He sacrificed a _part of him_ to save a part of me, because he loves me. I love him too, and my sacrifice was much easier to make because I know that Magnus doesn’t _need_ me.” He smirked at Jace. “He just _wants_ me very, very badly.”

Jace screwed up his face. “I’ve asked you not to wave your sex life in my face all the time, Alec.”

“How sad for you,” Alec replied as deadpan as possible.

“I’m less concerned about Valentine’s dynastic plans and more worried to discover that he was keeping tabs on Biscuit all through her childhood.” Magnus twisted a ring on his finger contemplatively.

“I know; it’s pretty creepy,” Jace acknowledged. “It’s not surprising that I was left alone so much, now that I’ve discovered how many other irons he had in the fire. When did he find the time?”

“It’s worse than creepy,” Magnus replied. “It means there was a leak, one that neither Jocelyn nor Luke picked up.”

“You not including yourself in there?” Alec asked.

Magnus sniffed. “Of course not. Other than completing one or two small tasks for Jocelyn—”

“Like wiping Clary’s memories,” Jace interrupted.

Magnus glared at him. “Jocelyn felt that it was safer to keep her distance from me. I was, after all, the most recognisable Downworlder in New York. I can’t say that I minded. Recent events had made associations with Shadowhunters, of any kind, a rather risky proposition.”

Alec frowned. “If you were such a notable Downworld figure, then how was it that Izzy, Jace and I had never heard of you before Clary came on the scene?”

Magnus gave an elegant shrug. “How am I supposed to know why you Shadowhunters do the things you do? Perhaps you were more focussed on demon-hunting than on checking up on the ‘Who’s Who’ of the local Downworld.”

“Well, Izzy and I used to go to Pandemonium all the time, and we never saw you,” Jace said frankly. “I think I would have remembered. If I didn’t, Izzy certainly would have.”

Magnus waved his hand. “I might have been in the habit of using a glamour to disguise myself from Shadowhunter eyes.”

“It doesn’t matter right now,” Alec said, remembering why they were talking in the first place. “What matters is that unless we do some heavy-duty redacting, this information is going to be widely circulated soon.”

Jace frowned, then shook his head. “We can’t afford to play favourites with this, Alec. You know that better than I do.”

Alec just looked at him. “You’re my parabatai, Jace. My _actual_ soulmate, the one I chose. There are a lot of rules that I’ll break for you. You know that.”

“Yeah,” Jace’s smile was twisted. “You shouldn’t do that, you know.”

Alec shrugged helplessly. “I can’t not.”

“Yes, yes,” Magnus interrupted. “You both love each other very much, etc. and so forth. I’m sure that in an hour you’ll be weeping into each other’s hair and proclaiming your eternal devotion. Right now, we need to make sure that everyone’s on the same page, and that Blondie is prepared for the undoubted fallout.”

Jace grimaced. “The Clave has already questioned me rather thoroughly about Valentine. Thank the Angel that I won’t have to go through that again.”

Magnus sighed. “But that’s the point we’ve been making. The Clave’s actions are always secretive. The rest of the Downworld wasn’t privy to the questioning, and there will be some who will not trust any actions the Clave has reportedly taken on the matter. Not with the scars of recent history still so fresh. You might find the Downworld…difficult…for a time.”

Jace set his jaw pugnaciously. “I don’t care.”

Alec exchanged a look with Magnus. “Yeah, that was convincing.”

“I’m not going to run around crying in everyone’s faces because of my sad childhood and my mean father!” Jace insisted.

“I’m not suggesting you do,” Magnus soothed.

Alec snorted with laughter. Jace and Magnus stared at him. “Oh, come on, can’t you just see it? Jace on that show you showed me, with that famous opera woman, crying about how he’s not his father and the world doesn’t understand him.”

Magnus’ brow furrowed. “Opera woman…do you mean Oprah?”

Alec nodded. “That’s the one. She likes guests who cry all over her, right?”

Magnus’ lips started twitching.

“I’m glad that you’re enjoying yourselves,” Jace said, crossing his arms.

Alec waved a hand. “One day, when you’re feeling a little less raw, I’ll show it to you. Trust me, you’ll find the idea as funny as we do.”

Jace looked unconvinced.

“Getting back to our Biscuit,” Magnus said, redirecting the conversation. “I think that we’re going to have to do something about this memory loss of hers. Leaving her like she is at the moment isn’t tenable. As soon as these documents are made public, she’ll be under even more threat than the Travellers are. After all, there are fifty or so Travellers, but as far as we can tell, there are only two of Valentine’s experimental children still around.”

Alec exchanged a look with Jace. “Magnus,” he said, carefully trying not to sound accusing, “if you know how to fix Clary’s memory, why are we only hearing about it now?”

“Oh, don’t be ridiculous. If I knew how to restore her memory, I can assure you I would have done so already.”

“Then how…” Jace asked.

“Why, by going to the people who took it away, of course. We’ll need to talk to the Angels.”

Alec blinked. “Right. Why didn’t we think of that?”

Magnus waved his hands. “I didn’t mention it before because it’s not something to be taken lightly. Getting the Angels’ attention is difficult and somewhat risky. If we get my father’s memories back, he might actually be useful there.”

Alec raised an eyebrow. “Right. Because he’s known to enjoy being useful.”

“Well, he’ll owe us a favour. Best to use it up quick, and this would be perfect. But we’re going to have to wait until we get back from Edom.”


	5. Chapter 5

## Chapter five

Alec kept himself as busy as he could while he waited for Magnus, Catarina, Ragnor, and Lorenzo to return from Edom.

He knew why the trip was necessary, they’d discussed the pros and cons again and again. In the end, they’d all reluctantly agreed that since his magic was returning it seemed highly probable that Asmodeus’ memory would also be making a comeback at some stage. Therefore, the smartest option was to be in control of the process as possible. Although she had initially refused, Catarina had bowed to Magnus’ persistent persuasion and agreed to go along. Ragnor had grumped for a while and then announced he was going too.

Even the Spiral Labyrinth had agreed.

That didn’t mean that Alec liked the idea. The Asmodeus who’d been strewing the adjoining apartment with oil-paintings of the New York skyline might not have been the most congenial of men, and he wasn’t exactly easy to live with, but Alec couldn’t help but feel that the inconvenience of having his father-in-law around all the time and stinking up the place with turpentine might be preferable over returning Asmodeus to the Greater Demon he was before.

Even if helping him would leave him in their debt. Everything Alec had read indicated that the only thing worse than being in debt to a Greater Demon was having _them_ indebted to _you_. It was like those mundane stories about the Fae. Except compared to Greater Demons, Fae were easy. They were mostly happy in their own realm, so they weren’t much trouble. Demons, on the other hand…

Of course, the options appeared to be a Greater Demon who was in their debt or a Greater Demon with a grudge. Possibly a Greater Demon with a grudge, who was in their debt. Alec would prefer for there to be no Greater Demons at all, but then no-one seemed to be taking his wishes into account. He’d just have to deal.

After reading the same contract for the third time and still having no idea what it said, Alec decided to do a quick sweep and look in on everyone else.

Jace was running one of his training sessions; this one was mixed; staff, knife, and hand-to-hand. There were people all over the place, so Alec went to see if Underhill needed him for anything.

“Everything’s under control, sir,” Underhill assured him. He hesitated. It was barely for a moment, but Alec had come to know his head of security quite well.

“What is it?”

“I’m not sure if…”

Alec frowned. Underhill wasn’t usually this bashful. “You might as well just tell me.”

Underhill sighed. “Here. Take a look at this, sir.” He handed over his tablet. It showed several weeks of a personnel schedule, all neatly filled out, aside from any of the usual identifying details such as name or rank. Only this couldn’t possibly be one person’s schedule. There were sporadic food breaks, but other than a couple of outliers—a single night off on a Thursday a couple of weeks ago, and Monday evenings through the night to Tuesday morning were set aside—this was the schedule of someone who was averaging barely two hours sleep a night.

A second look at the departments listed gave him enough information to make an educated guess as to the person who’s schedule it was.

Alec handed the tablet back. “How accurate is that?”

Underhill returned his gaze steadily. “I double-checked the time-stamps myself.”

“Shit.” Alec’s hands clenched. How had he missed this? “I’ll talk to her.”

“Thank you, sir.”

Alec went to find Izzy. He found her in the armoury going over one of the blades with Joshua Blackvine, pointing out imperfections that Alec couldn’t see. As soon as she saw him, she set Blackvine to making detailed notations on every blade they had in stock and then got up.

“Come on, Alec,” she said. “Let’s go and get some fresh air. You look like you’re about to explode with tension. What has you so on edge?”

“Magnus has taken Asmodeus to Edom,” Alec blurted. Even if someone was eavesdropping and took the information to the Clave, it wasn’t like they’d be able to do anything about it.

Izzy gave him a startled look. “That was today? I thought it wasn’t till Monday?”

“Izzy, it _is_ Monday.”

“Oh, right.” She sighed. “Take me to lunch and buy me something full of sugar, big brother. Even better, two somethings.”

They went down the road to the little café that Izzy preferred.

“You’ve spent all morning imagining all the things that could go wrong, haven’t you?” she said when they were settled side-by-side at the corner table. It was the only spot that allowed them to keep an eye on both entrances and the road outside.

Alec sighed. “Can you blame me?”

“Magnus will be fine,” Izzy said calmly, stirring her coffee. She lifted it to her lips. “Ah. That’s the stuff.”

“What have you been up to?” Alec asked, trying to divert attention away from his quite reasonable concerns about his husband’s safety. “I missed you on Saturday.”

“There’s just so much to do all of a sudden.” Izzy dropped her head to Alec’s shoulder, smiling when he automatically wrapped his arm around her.

“You have three important jobs,” Alec pointed out. “There was bound to be a time conflict sooner or later. Are you sure you’re getting enough rest?”

Izzy groaned. “This is not the time to say, ‘I told you so,’ Alec. This is a time to give me a hug and to remind me that my big, strong, brother will do everything he can to help me.”

Alec used the arm around her to tug her closer into his side. “I don’t need to speak the obvious when my incredibly intelligent sister is around.” He laughed when she poked him in his ticklish spot. “Sorry, sorry. Truly though, is there anything I can do to help you?” He looked her over, taking in the dark shadows under her eyes. “It’s okay to ask for help, you know. A wise person I know told me that.”

She smiled up at him. It was unrestrained, a smile that he’d missed while they’d had Valentine on one side and the Clave on the other, their parents in between; all of them piling on the pressure. “I know,” she admitted. “I just…I’ve felt I need to prove myself for so long. I always had to be better, achieve more. It’s hard to let go of that mindset.”

“I know,” he sympathised. “You can’t keep putting these hours in though. I honestly don’t know how you’re still standing. Stamina runes can only help so much before it all comes crashing down. Isn’t Simon trying to drag you away? Are you seeing him at all, aside from when he’s coming in and out for his Deputy duties? I know that I’d be a wreck if I didn’t have Magnus to go home to.”

“You’d end up working twenty-hour days, seven days a week,” Izzy agreed. She sighed. “Simon is great, and the time I spend with him does leave me energised and happier, but he doesn’t really understand the pressure that I’m under. He does his best to be supportive…he never tries to make me feel bad when I can’t spend as much time with him as I’d like to, I just…” she shrugged. “It’s different than it is with you and Magnus, I suppose.”

Alec nodded thoughtfully. “That makes sense. Magnus knows what it’s like to be in a position where his decisions affect a large number of people, and where no matter what choice he makes there are going to be people who disagree with him, sometimes vocally. Simon…”

“Simon has personal concerns,” Izzy observed, “but he doesn’t really know what it’s like to have other people relying on him.”

“He’s very young,” Alec pointed out.

Izzy laughed. “Well, my previous long-term boyfriend was very old. I thought being the mature, experienced one in a relationship might be a bit refreshing.”

“What long-term boyfriend was this? You mean Meliorn? I thought he was a friend-with-benefits.”

Izzy gave a theatrical gasp. “Alec! Where did you hear that term?”

Alec just looked at her. “I’m pretty sure _you_ explained it to me, Izzy. When you were telling me about how your ‘thing’ with Meliorn wasn’t serious.”

Izzy shrugged. “I think, in retrospect, it was more serious than either of us wanted to admit,” she confessed. “We were never exclusive, but there was always this feeling that maybe one day we would be. There were a couple of times when I thought he was trying to tell me that he’d be willing, but I was all hung up on the life-span thing.” She laughed ruefully. “I saw the look on his face when he saw me with Simon. He played it off, and he’ll never say anything about it, but…” she shrugged again. “I don’t like feeling that I might have hurt him.”

“Sometimes it’s unavoidable,” Alec said, giving her another squeeze. He remembered Lydia’s too-bright smile and her assurances that she would be ‘fine’ with a slight wince. “I guess it’s all part and parcel of being grown-ups.”

“Look at you, dispensing relationship advice,” Izzy teased gently. She brushed some crumbs off his shirt. “Sorry for getting you all messy.”

“I never mind when you get me messy,” Alec assured her, hearing the double meaning in her words and answering her in kind. He decided to lighten the tone. “Besides, it’s nothing to that time when you sprained your ankle setting traps for Jace in the mud-pit, remember? You made me come and get you, but then you said you weren’t done yet. You made me carry you around while you added the finishing touches. I came out of there with mud _in my ears_ , Izzy.”

She laughed and sat up a bit. “Well, he shouldn’t have called me short-ass.”

Alec laughed too. “Izzy, I hate to be the one to break this to you…”

Izzy narrowed her eyes at him. “I hope you aren’t going to call me a short-ass, Alec.”

“Of course not. You’re exactly the right size to rest my elbow on,” he assured her. He ducked away from her retaliatory pointy finger to the ribs, laughing again.

Alec finished his lunch in a much better mood. Izzy always managed to make him feel better. It was a skill she’d had since she was baby.

They were just getting ready to leave when their phones chirped out notification of an incoming text. They exchanged a quick look as they reached for their phones. Aside from parental announcements, a text that came to both of them was pretty much guaranteed to be bad news.

It was from Magnus. He started out by stating that the matter wasn’t urgent, but then went on to request their presence, together, as soon as they could arrange it.

Izzy groaned. “I don’t have _time_!”

Alec just shook his head at her. She’d already heard his opinion on the matter, the only thing repeating it would achieve was getting her to dig in their heels. Lightwoods were a contrary bunch by nature, they didn’t like being told what to do. Which, considering that they were raised as soldiers, was rather amusing.

Izzy sighed. “Okay, big brother, you win. I’ll find someone else to take over the armoury full-time until we’ve finished going through Valentine’s artefacts. In the meantime, I’ll come with you to find out what bug is up your husband’s ass.”

“Gross, Izzy.”

v^v^v^v

When they got to the apartment, it was to discover Magnus pacing up and down the foyer worriedly. “Alexander!” he greeted Alec with a kiss. “Lovely to see you as always, Isabelle. And may I say that the shade of lipstick you’re wearing particularly suits you?” He reached out to give her a hug.

“What’s wrong?” Alec asked, starting to get worried. Magnus didn’t often display his nerves like this. “Will I need to cancel dinner tonight?”

“Good plan!” Magnus agreed without hesitation, which was even more worrying. Magnus loved entertaining, and typically nothing short of an apocalypse could stop him. Alec got out his phone and sent a quick text to Jace asking him to cancel on his behalf, assuring him that he was fine and promising to explain later. Jace would be able to feel he was okay with the parabatai rune, and would hopefully be able to assuage any fears that Maryse or Max might have.

“Let’s talk inside.” Magnus ushered them in. “Isabelle, let me introduce you to one of my oldest friends.”

Alec was a little surprised to see how full their apartment was.

Ragnor was sitting in the armchair which had been pulled over to the window to take advantage of the weak winter light. He had a small glass of amber liquid beside him on one of Magnus’ little tables, and he was paging through a large, cumbersome looking book. He glanced up at their entrance, observing Izzy with interest.

In the living area, Catarina, Lorenzo, Asmodeus, and Madzie were gathered around a monopoly board. They didn’t pay any attention to Alec and Izzy’s presence after a quick greeting.

Magnus’ flustered and anxious demeanour was a stark contrast to the relaxed manner of the other people present. He performed the introductions with his usual flourish and barely waited long enough for them to get the usual pleasantries out of the way.

“Alexander, Isabelle…” he wrung his hands together. Alec reached out to hold them gently in his own.

Ragnor put his book down. “Oh, just spit it out, old fellow.” He got up from his chair and picked up his glass before wandering over to join them. “I daresay it’s not as bad as your dithering will lead them to believe it is.”

Alec didn’t like seeing his husband so upset. “What’s wrong?”

Magnus heaved a huge sigh. He waved his hand, producing an orange drink in a tall glass for Izzy, a strawberry daiquiri for Alec, and his usual martini for himself.

“It’s not even lunchtime,” Alec pointed out with some concern. Magnus might enjoy his alcoholic beverages, but it wasn’t common to start this early in the day.

“You might be wanting a little fortification later,” Ragnor said with poorly disguised amusement.

“Come on, Magnus, it can’t be that bad,” Izzy said, starting to look alarmed. “Wait, are we expecting anyone else to join us?”

“No, no, I really only needed to speak to the two of you,” Magnus said. “I suppose I should explain. I’m sure you recall, Alec, that today was the day we were to take my father to Edom.”

Given Magnus’ use of ‘my father’ when speaking of Asmodeus, whatever had happened hadn’t managed to destroy the rapport that Magnus and Asmodeus had been building the last couple of weeks. Surely that was good news?

“How did that go?” Izzy asked, giving Asmodeus a more thorough inspection. To Alec’s eye, he certainly didn’t look any different.

Magnus shuddered. “Well, it appears that our previous foray there might have had one or two unintended consequences. Perhaps several, it’s hard to be exact.”

Ragnor laughed and sipped his drink.

“What kind of consequences?” Alec asked, trying his best to ignore Ragnor and be supportive of his clearly struggling husband. “I thought it would just be a burnt-up husk. It was looking pretty fiery when we were leaving.”

Magnus twitched. “When Catarina, Ragnor, and I made plans to visit, we had certain expectations about how it would go,” he began. “With unrestricted access to Edom, we expected my father’s magic levels to rapidly return to their pre-limbo state. Everything we know about Greater Demons and their connection to their demonic realms pointed in that direction. Then, with his magic fully restored, we anticipated that his mind would heal in fairly short order.”

“I take it that didn’t happen,” Izzy said.

“No,” Magnus said. “The thing is… The thing is…”

“Magnus is the new Lord of Edom,” Ragnor chimed in helpfully.

Magnus scowled at him. “You don’t have to just blurt it out like that, Ragnor! I was getting there!”

“Perhaps,” Ragnor replied dismissively. “But since I wanted you to arrive sometime before the next ice-age, I felt that some help would be required.”

Alec blinked. “You’re the new Lord of Edom? Does that mean that you’re a Greater Demon now? I thought it was only Greater Demons that could harness the power of the realms?”

Magnus winced. “That’s never been entirely accurate. Something that many people tend to forget, Alexander, is that there are other beings with power equal to that of the Greater Demons. It’s just…aligned a little differently, shall we say. Regardless, they have the same _ability_ to harness the power of realms in general.”

Izzy leaned forward. “You mean the Angels? Angels can harness the power of demonic realms?”

“Not demonic realms, Isabelle,” Magnus explained. “Angels naturally inhabit Angelic realms. And not just any Angels, just as it’s not just any Demons. Arch Angels and Greater Demons…if you think of them as two sides of the same coin, equal and opposite at the same time…”

“Okay…but, you’re not a Greater Demon,” Alec said slowly. “You’re not an Arch Angel either. So…”

“I’m just saying that all our previous knowledge stated that only Greater Demons and Arch Angels were able to harness the realms,” Magnus said. “As you pointed out, I am neither of those things. Which is why it was such a big shock when we arrived, and the realm immediately started reacting to my presence.”

Izzy was starting to look as amused as Ragnor. “You’ve got a realm of your own? Isn’t this good news? Why are you acting so alarmed?”

Alec threw her a censorious glare that she ignored with the ease of long practice. “If we don’t know why and how something happened then it could backfire on us later.” He turned back to Magnus. “Is this why none of the other Greater Demons has made a move yet? You told me that they were mobilising for a fight.”

“We’ve got a pretty good idea of at least _part_ of the answer,” Magnus said with a sigh. “After some discussion, we’ve worked out a probable timeline. There were several unique circumstances which we believe combined to create a rather unprecedented situation.”

“Tell us about it,” Alec encouraged.

“Firstly, at least chronologically, Asmodeus impregnated a human woman. She gave birth to one of the most beautiful, talented—”

“Modest, humble,” Ragnor muttered.

“—Warlock babies in the world,” Magnus continued, with a glare to Ragnor.

Alec had noticed that Ragnor’s interjections and wry asides worked to calm Magnus down. He was starting to like the snarky, irascible Warlock. No wonder Magnus counted him amongst his closest friends.

“This young Warlock was favoured amongst his father’s children,” Magnus said with his nose in the air. “So favoured was he that his father wished for him to join him in ruling his realm. To entice him, Asmodeus tried several times to show him the benefits. On one occasion, he allowed his son a stable connection to the realm, although he made sure that it connected through him.

“Our heroic Warlock eventually declined his father’s offer and left Edom, swearing never to return. He did his best to ignore the link, preferring to rely only on the magical gifts that were part of his Warlock heritage.”

Izzy looked fascinated. “You mean that you can keep the magic completely separate? How does that work?”

Magnus dropped his dignified stance. “It all comes down to the different ways our magic manifests,” he explained eagerly. “Most of the Shadow World come by their various powers by blood, as you know. For Vampires and Werewolves, the blood is cursed, and a bite is part of its transference. It’s violent—it has to be, because curses are not particularly nice things.

“The Nephilim were made when Raziel shared his blood with humans, and to this day, more Nephilim can be created by use of the Mortal Cup. The condition is also passed from parent to child. Did you know that historically, not every child of two Nephilim has been able to bear Angelic runes? But I digress. The Fae are another matter, but then unlike the rest of the Shadow World, they don’t have Mundane beginnings.

“Warlocks, on the other hand, are a more organic mix of Demon and Mundane physiologies. Our magic isn’t something that’s introduced by way of our blood, it is a part of us.” He looked uncomfortable for a moment.

Alec wondered if he was remembering what it was like to give up his magic.

Taking advantage of the brief pause, Izzy turned to Alec. “Are you as discomfited as I am to hear our Angelic heritage discussed like some sort of blood disease that we transmit to our offspring?”

Alec shrugged. “Yes, but he’s not wrong, is he? I wonder if a lot of the Clave’s insistence about how much better we are because of Raziel’s blessing is really a case of them sticking their fingers in their collective ears and shouting, ‘La, la, la, we’re totally better than those nasty Downworlders, so there!’”

Izzy smirked. “I would love to see you tell the Consul that.”

“I’d either be clapped in chains for treason or sent to the hospital for lunacy.”

“It would still be funny.”

“If you’ve finished?” Magnus asked impatiently. “Very well. As I was saying, Warlock magic is a part of us from birth. There is a time in our youth where we’re unable to access it, of course, but once we start using it, it’s there forever. Unless something untoward happens. But a Warlock’s magic and a Demon’s magic manifest themselves very differently.”

“What do you mean? Isn’t magic just magic?”

“Warlocks have…a reservoir, for want of a better term,” Magnus explained. “Each Warlock’s reservoir is different. Imagine it a little like a container that we carry around with us. Some might have a cup, some might have a shot glass. This container is fed from…imagine a thin hosepipe. The Warlock uses the magic in the container for various spells, etc. and then their core works to replenish the magic. It flows in through the hose until, eventually, the container is full again.”

Alec nodded. That seemed clear enough.

“Warlocks have a general feeling about the capacity of each other’s containers,” Magnus went on. “It’s not exact, not without a rather complicated incantation which can only be cast on someone with their consent, but we can generally tell who holds more power than who.”

“The ones with the larger containers are the more powerful Warlocks?” Izzy reasoned.

“Only to a point,” Ragnor interjected. “Size isn’t the only thing that matters. How you use what you have will make a significant difference in what you can achieve, and really, aren’t your achievements the true measure of the power you wield?”

Magnus rolled his eyes. “Yes, yes, Ragnor, keep telling yourself that.” He sniffed theatrically. “He’s not wrong,” he admitted, sounding like saying that was like pulling screws. “But it’s less important for the purposes of our discussion.”

Alec leaned forward a little. “When we were looking for a way to wake Jocelyn Fairchild, and Hodge brought up pictures of three Warlocks that were said to be more powerful than you…”

Ragnor snorted. “Like any Warlock with sense enough to know what they were talking about would be inclined to tell the Clave such intimate Warlock business.” There was a threat in his tone that had Alec straightening up. At his side, Izzy was more alert as well.

Magnus waved his hand. “Oh, be quiet, you old curmudgeon. Alexander and Isabelle are some of the very best examples of Nephilim that I’ve ever known. They’re fully aware of the limitations of the Clave. Need I remind you that this information is going to be relevant to both of them shortly?”

Alec wasn’t sure he liked the sound of that. He glanced at Izzy, who was frowning as well. “I don’t intend to document any part of this conversation.” He paused. ”Unless what you have to say constitutes an imminent threat to the Shadow World. Even then, only if it’s relevant.”

“And Isabelle is even more liberal than her brother!” Magnus proclaimed.

Ragnor didn’t say anything, but his posture loosened quite considerably. Alec found himself relaxing slightly in response.

“So, just how powerful are you, Magnus?” Izzy asked, tossing her hair over her shoulder.

Magnus paused. “Well,” he said carefully, “let’s say that the average Warlock—not that there really is such a thing, but just imagine it for the purposes of this discussion—carries around a tea-cup worth of magic. They might have a hose-pipe that approximates the tubing used in hospitals to deliver blood transfusions.

“Then you have the more powerful Warlocks, the ones that become the High Warlocks, the ones that live long lives, the ones that come to the Clave’s notice. They might have a small bucket, with a hose-pipe more like a thin drinking straw, one you find attached to those juice packs.” He cocked his head to one side, glancing over to the group playing monopoly in the lounge.

Catarina called out, “Oh, just go ahead, Magnus. Madzie and I trust Alec and Isabelle, don’t we, sweetie?”

Madzie nodded enthusiastically. “You landed on my hotel,” she said to Asmodeus. “That’s going to cost you big-time, buddy!”

Lorenzo lifted his head to glare at Magnus before giving a sharp nod and returning his attention back to the game.

“Lorenzo and Ragnor each have small buckets,” Magnus said. “Lorenzo, I couldn’t tell you about, but Ragnor—being practically ancient—has worked carefully over the years to increase the size of his hose-pipe. That means that to someone who doesn’t know any better, he seems to have a larger container than he really does.”

Ragnor lifted his glass in a toast, and then drained it. “You’re being a terrible host, Magnus,” he complained, waggling it meaningfully.

Magnus sighed and waved his hand, refilling the glass. Alec remembered his own glass and decided that now was a good time to take a sip. It was cold and sweet, and tasted amazing.

“Catarina has a somewhat larger bucket,” Magnus went on. “She’s fairly skilled at the finer points of her magic usage—healers often are—so I really have no idea as to the size of her hose-pipe. Madzie’s bucket is half again the size of Catarina’s.”

Alec blinked in shock. He knew that his young friend was powerful, but that was surprising.

“That is one of the reasons that we’re so careful with her safety,” Magnus went on. “Her power levels are rare; it’s already attracted negative attention. There are far too many unscrupulous people out there who would like to take advantage of our dear one.”

Alec knew that all too well. “Over my dead body,” he said calmly, taking another sip of his daiquiri.

Magnus smiled at him. “I love you, Alexander. But back to the discussion… If we say that Madzie has a large bucket, holding maybe a gallon, then the amount I was born with would be akin to…”

“One of those industrial drums,” Ragnor said bluntly. “He’s always had a ridiculous amount of power. It’s why he uses it for the smallest things, and why he portals everywhere. For that mythical ‘average Warlock’ of earlier, a single portal would be enough to wipe them out for the better part of the day, and good luck getting any combat magic out of them afterwards. Cat and I—and Lorenzo too, for that matter—are far more versatile and have more options up our sleeves, but young Magnus here…” he shook his head. “If he didn’t use his magic almost constantly, strange things would be happening around him all the time as the excess found ways to bleed off.”

“Excess?” Izzy and Alec asked at the same time.

“Most Warlocks don’t have to worry about it,” Magnus said, looking slightly uncomfortable. “Their problems lie more with having enough magic to perform the tasks that they wish to, rather than to stop from setting fire to the drapes. When Madzie matures, she’ll need to make sure that she uses her magic on a fairly regular basis. I wouldn’t be surprised if she ended up as a rather skilled and in-demand warder, since wards require a constant influx of magic to maintain.”

Izzy poked Alec in the side with her finger. “You just always have to have the best toys, don’t you? By the Angel, you can’t do anything on a small scale. No wonder our mother was having a conniption fit when he crashed your wedding.”

“I’d really like the full story at some point,” Ragnor put in.

“Later,” Magnus said. “So, this drum of mine is fed by a largeish hosepipe. That’s comparatively, mind you. Relative to the size of the drum, it’s not large at all.” He sighed. “However, because of some meddling by Asmodeus, I also have another…source of power, shall we say.”

“From Edom,” Alec prompted.

“Yes. Now, the power from Edom is—as I’ve already explained—rather different from my own. Perhaps think of it as two immiscible liquids. Oil and water. I have a large barrel full of water, and at the top of it is a thin layer of oil that comes from a separate hosepipe; one that’s whisker-thin, and connected to Edom. Or, originally, to my father, and through _him_ to Edom.”

“What did that mean for how you used your magic?” Izzy asked curiously.

Magnus shrugged. “To be honest, I tried my best to only use the water. My father and I…let’s say that we didn’t part on the best of terms. His oily magic reminded me of things I wanted to forget, of a person I didn’t want to be anymore. So I ignored it as much as possible.”

Ragnor laughed. “It ended up being a good way to get people to underestimate him,” he shared. “Demonic magic and Warlock magic resonate differently. There wasn’t enough demonic magic being generated to register to normal senses; only a proper scan—one that requires Magnus’ permission—can detect it unless he actively uses it. But because it’s layered on the outside of his Warlock magic, his Warlock magic ends up muffled. He feels as if he has less magic than he actually does.” He shrugged. “Not a great deal less, you understand, but enough that he’s been underestimated a time or two. And a Warlock’s two greatest weapons…”

“Are being overestimated, and being underestimated,” Magnus finished with the rote manner of someone repeating lessons that had been drummed into him. “The other advantage, of course, was that even though I swore to myself that I would never use it, I always knew that the power was there if I needed it. It wasn’t a large reserve, but it was enough that I would never be utterly dry.”

“Hang on,” Alec interrupted, having thought of something. “When you were talking about the Travellers, you said that you couldn’t sense the magic in them. But just now you said that magic is an integral part of a Warlock. Are they just not generating magic anymore? What can _do_ that?”

“Oh, they’re still generating magic,” Magnus revealed offhandedly. “They just have nothing to store their magic _in_. Luckily none of them had particularly large reserves to begin with, which means that the magic constantly leaking out of them is a trickle. They probably won’t even register it. One or two of them might find themselves a little luckier than the average Mundane, is all.”

“Does that mean that when you agreed to trade your magic to Asmodeus…” Alec said slowly, “…you handed over your container?”

Magnus sighed. “It was a bargain that could never have worked if Asmodeus wasn’t both my father and a Greater Demon. Demons—and Angels, for that matter—understand and manipulate magic differently than Warlocks do. In part, I think it’s inherent in their beings…Angels and Demons don’t _have_ magic so much as they _are_ magic. Or…it’s less that they carry a container around that may run dry or be taken away, but more that they’re saturated with magic at all times. While in their realm, they’re constantly soaking the magic up, which is why killing a Greater Demon is no easy feat. And because Demons can’t be truly killed elsewhere… I’m sure you’re aware of the difficulties.”

Izzy sighed. “Which is why Lilith wasn’t intimidated in the slightest when we turned up to challenge her.”

Magnus smiled briefly. “I imagine that to her, it was rather like being growled at by an angry kitten. When I realised what you had all done, that you had come to Edom to confront her…” He shook his head. “Well, I didn’t hold out a great deal of hope.”

Alec frowned. He looked over to where Lorenzo was pretending not to be paying any attention to them. “Lorenzo would have known how hopeless it was.”

“Yes.”

“We told him he could help save the world,” Alec said. “But if he believed it was hopeless, then why did he come?”

“That…you will have to discuss with him,” Magnus replied. He drained his glass and refilled it. “Now, where was I?”

“You were talking about a Greater Demon’s connection to their realm,” Izzy said, starting to sound impatient. “This is truly fascinating, but I’ve not heard anything that constitutes an emergency or actually requires my presence. Do you really need me here? I have a hundred and one things back at the Institute that needed my attention yesterday.”

“Unless someone’s life is at stake, then yes, you will want to be here,” Magnus said firmly. “Backtracking a little… There I was, connected to the magic of Edom through my father, but refusing to use that power. The next thing that happened, in our list of unusual circumstances, was Lilith’s departure to go to the aid of her ‘son.’ Its place on my timeline is a little wobbly, but it could be argued that without Lilith’s shenanigans on the Mundane plane, I would never have been desperate enough to go to Edom to bargain with my father.

“As everyone here is aware, the price my father demanded to assist me was my magic. I agreed, and arrived back in New York to discover Alec near death. His parabatai had been freed from Lilith’s grasp, as promised, and Sherwin had used the Mark of Cain to defeat Lilith, causing her to be banished back to Edom where she reformed in a weakened state.”

Izzy sighed. “He’s not even here, Magnus. You can call him by his real name, you know.”

Magnus waved his hand dismissively. “Asmodeus used the combination of his power and mine to ensure that Lilith—who was rather done-in—could not return to full strength. You might want to keep in mind that while Asmodeus was using my power, it intermingled with the demonic power of the realm. Not in such a way as they could not be separated again—oil and water, remember—but in such a way that my magic grew more familiar with the realm, and the realm grew more familiar with my magic.” He burped slightly. “An emulsifision. Emulsion. Whatever.”

Alec was starting to get an inkling of where this was going.

“I’m sure all of those who know what happened will realise that next on our list was my beloved Alexander bargaining with my father for the return of my magic. Asmodeus, not being one to settle for three-quarters of a cake when there might be a way to get the whole thing, agreed. His price, that Alec had to break my heart. His hope was, of course, that he could use my devastation to convince me to return with him to Edom, to rule at his side as he’d wished for centuries.”

Magnus paused for a long moment. “It might have worked,” he admitted, “if Maryse hadn’t come to visit me. She wanted to find out the meaning of something Alec had told her. The moment she saw me use my magic, she understood what must have happened. She showed me the Lightwood family ring that Alec had returned to her. When I realised…” He shook his head.

Izzy’s eyes were wide. Alec had never explained just how close Magnus had come to leaving, there hadn’t been any time. After it was all over, he and Magnus were married, it seemed less important. He could see a discussion about it looming in his future.

“It all made sense. My father’s extraordinary generosity, the way he _happened_ to turn up when I was at my lowest. I was furious. I told him that I intended to banish him back to Edom, and he said that I would never be free of him. I was so angry, so scared that he was telling the truth…I overpowered him, opened a portal, knocked him out, and sent him through.” Magnus sighed, eyes on the floor as he remembered. When he looked up, he was wearing his practised smile. It warmed when he caught Alec’s gaze, gentling into something more genuine.

“Chronologically, the next thing that happened was the hostage exchange in the Seelie realm,” Magnus went on. “Blah, blah, Morningstar, blah, blah, Jonathon and Clary Morgenstern being forcibly separated by the reforged Glorious—” Magnus paused. “Or perhaps we should consider the fact that Glorious allowed itself to be reforged at all? Never mind. The end result is that Glorious exploded, sending shards infused with heavenly fire in all directions. Quite a few of them found their way into our lovely Isabelle here, the other two Nephilim within the same radius weren’t even scratched.”

Izzy frowned. “Wait. You think that being hit by those shards was intentional?”

Magnus raised his eyebrows at her. “I wouldn’t presume to educate a Nephilim about matters that concern angelic artefacts, but I _do_ know that others before you have attempted to reforge Glorious, to no avail. There’s such a thing as coincidence, of course, and really who am I to say? But the end result is that Isabelle was infused with rather a lot of heavenly fire.

“Then Jonathon Morgenstern ripped a hole into Edom with Morningstar. He followed that desecration by destroying the sword so that the rift could never be reversed, thus dooming the Mundane plane to be overrun by asmodei. At this point—with Asmodeus stranded in limbo and, we’ve theorised, out of touch with Edom—Lilith freed herself and began to absorb Edom’s power. This is not something that happens instantly, of course, which is why we weren’t graced with her presence.”

“Thank the Angel,” both Alec and Izzy muttered in unison.

Magnus gave a wry smile. “Agreed. At this point, I portaled to my darling Alexander’s side for a touching reunion. I soon realised that the only way to keep my Alexander from wearing himself to nothing and then finally dying as a result of the rift was to close it. Which even I don’t have the power to do for long. Unless I have the power of Edom to fuel me. So…” He made a whooshing gesture.

Ragnor snorted. “Self-sacrificing idiot.”

Magnus turned on his friend. “I would like to have seen you do any better! But wait, you couldn’t, could you, because you were taken down by a Shax Demon!”

“I was taken by surprise,” Ragnor said with great dignity.

“Riiiiight,” Magnus replied, scepticism dripping off the word. “Moving along, a bunch of stupidly brave—or was that bravely stupid?—Nephilim get it into their heads to invade Edom and take on Lilith. In furtherance of that goal, one of them creates a rune that binds Nephilim to Downworlders. It is so effective that they’re able to bypass Edom’s most crucial defence, which is that no being with angelic blood can survive there.

“Having recruited the services of a hapless Warlock with enough power and knowledge to create a portal _into Edom itself_ , they set off. Oh wait, first of all, Isabelle Lightwood, that fearless warrior woman, forger and wielder of the angelic blade Glorious, makes the utterly reckless decision to run off to Edom all by herself! It was a noble deed, of course, she hoped to stop her brother from making his own reckless choice. If there’s one thing that this generation of Lightwoods has perfected, it’s the habit of self-sacrifice. They should _stop_ , or this poor little Warlock’s heart is going to give out from the stress!”

Alec looked at Magnus incredulously. “Excuse me, Mr Pot, I’d like you to meet my friend Ms Kettle.” He turned to Izzy. “Although he’s right, you should stop.”

Izzy rolled her eyes. “I was on borrowed time anyway, Alec. I’ve already told you, the heavenly fire was going to burn me up sooner or later.”

Magnus drained his glass again. “Well, buckle in, kiddies, cause now we’ve come to the fun part. Isabelle, against all the odds, succeeds in killing Lilith. A Greater Demon. In her own realm. Something that no angel blooded has ever achieved before. The realm—which previously had two Greater Demon Lords as previously ascertained—is now left rudderless. But wait, there is a presence that it recognises! Something that carries the taste of its own power! The magic is familiar and welcoming!” Magnus waved his hands as if he was conducting an orchestra.

Alec was rather glad that the glass was empty, or the room would have been showered with its contents.

“At this point, had nothing else happened, we theorise that Edom would have burned me out and then burned me up in a matter of hours. You will recall we’ve already established that I am neither an angel nor a Greater Demon?” Magnus filled his glass and drained it again. “But that didn’t happen. And do you know _why_ that didn’t happen?”

Alec’s mind replayed the events. It wasn’t all that long ago, and his memory of the details was pretty clear. Izzy had burst into flame, heavenly fire engulfing her. A decision was quickly made to share the blaze amongst those present in an attempt to save her life, and then Clary—

“Clary joined you to Izzy using her new rune,” he realised. “I was joined to Lorenzo, Jace was joined to Meliorn, and Clary was joined to Simon, so that means that when Clary drew her runes on you...”

Izzy stood there with her mouth open.

Magnus nodded grimly. “It’s highly probable that _anyone else_ present would have been burnt up by the heavenly fire. However, fallen or not, my father is the equal of the Arch Angels. _Was_ an Arch Angel at one time, apparently. Even then, the combination of Edom’s hold and the blessing of Glorious would probably have been too much for just the two of us to cope with.”

“But we all joined hands, and the heavenly fire spread out amongst us all,” Alec recalled. “And then it—”

“—engulfed Edom,” Izzy said, eyes still wide with shock. “You said…it was…Edom was being destroyed! You said the rift didn’t matter because Edom was going to be destroyed!”

Magnus nodded sympathetically. “Most things _are_ destroyed when engulfed in flame. Of course, we’re dealing with Angels and Demons here, and I should have remembered that. After all, everyone knows—”

“Fire cleanses,” Alec finished. He drained what remained of his daiquiri. “Can you give me something a little stronger this time?”

Magnus snapped his fingers. A trolley appeared beside him with a tray of filled shot glasses resting on the top.

Alec took the one closest to him and necked it, grimacing at the taste but appreciating the burn. “So, when Ragnor said that you were the new Lord of Edom…”

“He neglected to mention that as far as we can tell, there’s also a new Lady,” Magnus said with a nod. He wiggled his fingers at Izzy in a mocking little wave. “Hiya, roomie.”

“Out of the way Alec,” Izzy said, elbowing him aside so she could reach the tray.

Alec was struck with an awful thought. “Who’s going to tell our mother?”

v^v^v^v

Catarina, Madzie, and Ragnor left soon after.

“We promised to stay for emotional support,” Catarina explained to Alec as she gave him a goodbye hug. At Ragnor’s snort, she rolled her eyes. “Fine, Madzie and I were here for emotional support, and Ragnor was here because he enjoys making fun of Magnus.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Alec said, nodding companionably to Ragnor. Ragnor winked back.

Alec, Magnus, and Izzy joined Asmodeus and Lorenzo in the lounge, and Magnus conjured more drinks.

Since most of Magnus’ stress appeared to have been about telling Alec and Izzy of their new circumstances, he immediately lost a lot of the frenetic tension that had been driving him.

Of course, that might have been something with the amount of alcohol he’d imbibed. Alec was starting to feel a bit buzzed himself. Izzy was knocking them back like she was in some sort of competition.

“What I don’t understand,” Alec said, after half an hour of contemplation while they all got steadily drunker, “is how you even figured all of this out. It just seems…”

“Crazy,” Izzy supplied. “It seems crazy. How do you know that’s what happened?”

“We know the results,” Magnus said emphatically. He pointed his index finger at her. Alec couldn’t help noticing that blue mist was emerging from the end before sort of…evaporating away.

Asmodeus just shook his head and cradled his whisky.

Lorenzo looked much soberer than the rest of them. “Most of our conclusions are conjecture,” he admitted. “However, they do fit the facts we were presented with. The realm formerly known as Edom—”

Magnus snorted so hard that his current drink—something pale yellow and fruity-smelling with an umbrella—came shooting out his nose. Alec found it as endearing as everything Magnus did.

“—no longer resembles a demonic realm.” Lorenzo shrugged. “To be honest, the closest thing it comes to is the Seelie realm.” He cocked his head to one side. “Which given the influences that shaped it is not terribly surprising, I suppose.” He sipped his drink. “It is… _green_.” He said it the same way someone might describe the ambience around a rubbish dump.

Izzy brightened up. “I like green.”

Magnus nodded. “I like green too. My Alexander has the most incredible green eyes, you know.”

Izzy nodded seriously. “I _know_. I got ordinary brown, and _he_ got these beautiful changeable things, and he doesn’t even _care_! Do you _know_ what I would do to have eyes like his? It’s _so_ not fair.”

“Isabelle, only say the word, and you shall have whatever colour eyes you wish,” Magnus promised. “Not that there’s anything wrong with your natural ones, of course. They’re delightful as they are.”

Izzy giggled. “There was this one guy I dated, he said they were like molten chocolate orbs.”

Alec screwed up his face.

Magnus recoiled. “You mean, melted and dripping down your face? That’s disgusting!”

“I _know_ ,” she giggled again and then sighed. “He was a good kisser, but lousy in bed. So much potential; wasted.”

Lorenzo looked interested. “Was he technically lousy, or just selfish? Because technique can be improved upon, but selfishness cannot.”

Izzy wrinkled up her nose. “Let’s just say that he didn’t care overly much if I got over the finish line, and it was a bit of a sprint in any case.”

“I don’t want to be listening to this,” Alec objected. “How would you like it if I started talking about _my_ sex life?”

Izzy rolled her eyes. “I’m not Jace, Alec. I’d love to hear about your sex life. I bet Magnus knows a lot. If you hadn’t been so instantly smitten with him, you know I would have been on that like white on rice, right?”

“If I hadn’t been captivated by your brother’s charms, I would have been delighted to be your rice,” Magnus assured her.

“Are they always like this?” Asmodeus asked Lorenzo. “So endlessly complimentary?”

“I think they do it because they know that Alec likes to see them getting on together,” Lorenzo replied. “Of course, it could be that they both like being the centre of attention, and this way, they both win. Is everyone else imagining what they’d look like having sex together? Because I am.”

“He’s my _son_!”

“She’s my _sister_!”

Magnus and Izzy broke into laughter. Lorenzo smiled smugly.

“Let’s change the subject,” Alec said firmly. “Magnus, would you get me another drink? Thank you.”

Asmodeus nodded emphatically. “When we arrived in Edom, I felt a distinct difference in my being,” he said, speaking directly to Alec. Izzy and Magnus were still chortling. “Nothing that I can properly explain, just a sense of energy, perhaps. My son, on the other hand, started to glow.”

Alec blinked. “Glow?”

“He began to shine from within.”

Alec almost said that Magnus always shone from within, but he didn’t want to derail the conversation again.

“He lit up like a Protostar,” Lorenzo remarked. “We were all rather astonished. Mind you, the rather verdant landscape was considerably astonishing all on its own. Even as we stood there, trees—or things that looked like trees, at any rate, one can never be sure in other realms—blossomed and fruited. The fruit dropped to the ground where it quickly broke down and was absorbed into the leaf litter, and the cycle began again.”

Asmodeus snorted. “Apparently my son is focused on reproduction. Someone might want to explain a few facts of life to the boy.”

Alec frowned. Wasn’t there something that was supposed to happen with Asmodeus? He couldn’t remember. He should probably ask. “Did whatever was supposed to happen, happen?”

“What something?” Magnus asked, finally finished giggling.

“The thing,” Alec said. He went to gesture towards Asmodeus, remembering at the last minute that he was holding a beverage. “The thing that you went down there for. Wait. Is it down? Why do we always call it down?”

“Prejudice,” Magnus replied promptly. “Down is for Demons, up is for Angels. Down is bad, up is good. Fucked if I know why.”

“I like the way you get a bit sweary when you’re drunk.”

Izzy shook her head. “Alec, you like everything Magnus does.”

“That’s not true,” Alec protested, feeling like his objectivity was being called into question. “I don’t like his…” he glanced around trying to find something of Magnus’ that he didn’t like, “…his dressing-gown!”

Izzy raised her eyebrows. “Really?”

“No,” Alec confessed. “I do actually like his dressing gown. I like it even more when he takes it off, of course.” He blinked. He’d wandered off topic again. “But there was supposed to be a Greater Demon thing. In Edom.”

Izzy’s eyes went wide. “That’s right!” She turned to Asmodeus. “Are you a Demon again?”

Asmodeus sighed and drained his drink. He didn’t even gesture at Magnus, it just slowly refilled itself. “I was always a Demon,” he said mournfully. “But no, my memories haven’t mysteriously returned. My son explained how his connection to Edom used to be through me, yes?

Alec and Izzy nodded.

“Well, now _my_ connection to Edom is through _him_. I’m definitely more powerful there than I am here, but I’m no longer Lord of the Realm.”

“He’s still a Greater Demon,” Magnus explained earnestly. “He’d probably be all-powerful again if he managed to kill and replace one of the other Greater Demons. Azazel, for instance.” He beamed at Asmodeus. “There you go, Father. Why don’t I help you destroy Azazel? Then you can have _his_ realm.”

Alec nodded in agreement. That seemed like a great plan. He hadn’t forgotten how Azazel had switched out Magnus and Valentine, which lead to Magnus being tortured right in front of him.

Izzy looked slightly alarmed. “Perhaps you shouldn’t be sending out the war parties just yet, big brother. Making decisions like this is something best left till we’re all sober.”

“I’m not that drunk,” Alec argued.

“Alec, you’re toasted.”

Magnus nodded. “I’m afraid your sister is right, dearest, you’re sozzled.”

“Does anyone want me to keep telling them about how we worked out the events leading up to the new leadership structure of Edom?” Lorenzo asked acidly.

“Yes, please,” Alec agreed. He wasn’t that drunk, but Magnus and Izzy would never agree now that they’d said differently. Why did he want them to get on together again? It wasn’t fair if they ganged up on him.

“When it became apparent that Edom was reacting to Magnus, and that Asmodeus wasn’t recovering, Magnus allowed Catarina to do a full magic scan.” Lorenzo grimaced. “He’s now doing some strange amalgamation of Warlock and demonic magic, and he has numerous metaphysical bonds leading from his core. One of which leads to me.”

Alec tilted his head to one side. “You and Magnus have a metaphysical bond?”

“Magnus has several bonds,” Lorenzo said significantly. “Two of which are much larger than the rest.”

Izzy got it faster than Alec did. “You mean he’s bonded to everyone who came down to Edom to rescue him?”

“Naturally, once Catarina saw the bond that led to me, she insisted on scanning my magic too.”

Magnus snorted. “You didn’t put up much of a fight, Lorenzo.”

Lorenzo sniffed disdainfully. “I think I know how to pick my fights a little better, Bane. There was nothing to be gained by refusing her, and to be honest, I wished to know the results myself. As you may have expected—or maybe not, who can tell with you Nephilim—my magic has been changed as well. Not quite as dramatically as Magnus’, of course, but then who is as dramatic as Magnus?”

“He’s just jealous,” Magnus confided to Izzy and Alec. “My magic is far prettier than his. I’d be jealous too, if it was the other way around. Anyway, the two large bonds are going to my two favourite Lightwoods, with the largest one being connected to Isabelle. Which is when we started going over what we knew and theorising about what had happened.”

Alec frowned, rubbing his fingers together. He remembered the way they’d tingled the day that he’d accidentally set fire to his tablet. “Does that mean that the rest of us all have bonds to each other as well?”

Lorenzo shook his head. “No, thank the darkness. I—according to Catarina—only have three bonds. One to Magnus, one to you, and another to your sister.”

“Wait,” Izzy said. “How do you know you have a bond with me?”

“Because Catarina did the scan on me again after the two of you arrived,” Lorenzo revealed. “She said the results were quite clear.”

“It makes sense,” Magnus said. “It was the likeliest eventuality.”

Alec shook his head. “How does any of this make sense?”

“Look on the bright side, big brother,” Izzy said, starting to look more like her usual cheerful self. “If the Clave _does_ try to crucify you, we can bust you out of prison and go hang out in Edom.”


	6. Chapter 6

## Chapter six

Alec woke the next morning with the feeling that there was something he should be remembering.

Then the events of the previous day came back to him. He and Izzy had left the Institute before midday and then spent the bulk of the afternoon and early evening getting drunk with Magnus, Lorenzo, and Asmodeus. His mother would be horrified.

Although it was always possible that she would have been right there with them, matching them drink for drink, if she’d had to listen to the wildly improbable tale that they’d been subjected to.

Luckily he was spared the hangover that a drinking binge like the one he’d engaged in should rightfully have left him with. Thank the Angel for hangover potions.

Alec snickered quietly to himself. No, not the Angel, thank Magnus. He rolled over to observe his sleeping husband. He, Alec Lightwood-Bane, really was the luckiest man alive. Who cared what strange, realm warping shenanigans life tried to throw at them. This, right here, right now, made it all worth it.

v^v^v^v

Alec tried to hold onto that feeling of serenity after arriving at the Institute. He walked right into the middle of the first serious dispute between a Shadowhunter patrol leader and the Downworlder Deputies on his team.

Underhill had been handling the matter admirably but didn’t bother disguising the look of relief on his face when he spotted Alec. He immediately turned the issue over and retreated, leaving Alec to work out the problem.

Alec wasn’t interested in hearing impassioned declarations. He was having flashbacks to Clary Fray’s arrival, and that kind of behaviour was the last precedent he wanted to set. He glared at all three of them. “I want you in my office with your written reports in one hour.”

The issue that caused the controversy turned out to be something that would have come across Alec’s desk anyway. If Alec ran his Institute the way it was run when he was a child, the whole matter would have been pretty cut and dried. The Shadowhunter technically had a higher rank, and the matter under question was an out-of-control werewolf. The patrol leader gave the order, and his patrol was expected to follow it. Disobeying direct orders in the field was a serious business, and for the safety of everyone, it couldn’t be encouraged.

However, patrol leaders were supposed to follow specific guidelines before giving their orders, and their patrol members could disobey in extreme circumstances. Just what those circumstances were, under the Deputy Downworlder Initiative, had yet to be finalised by the Cabinet.

Alec resisted the urge to bang his head against the desk. He needed to solve this without destroying everything they’d spent the last month trying to create.

“Glen Carstairs,” Alec said, once he had his thoughts in order. “You’re the patrol leader, and therefore, according to the Downworld Deputy Initiative Charter, your orders in the field are to be obeyed.” He waited for the triumph to flash in Carstairs’s eyes, noted the resentful defiance in Emma Forsyth. “However, in the field, nothing is ever cut and dried. When a patrol leader comes across a situation that needs to be solved, and they have an expert on their team, they’re expected to take their advice into consideration. Unless they happen to be privy to some other knowledge that may supersede or negate that advice, of course. A patrol leader also has to weigh factors such as potential casualties amongst witnesses, which may be of less concern to a narrowly focused expert.”

Carstairs was starting to look a little worried, while Forsyth was standing up straighter.

Alec pinned Carstairs with a glare. “So, tell me. Explain the extenuating factors that caused you to ignore Emma Forsyth’s expert recommendation and instruct your team to terminate the subject.”

Carstairs’ brow started to glisten slightly. “I, uh, felt that Forsyth might be allowing her bias to colour her interpretation of the situation.”

Alec stared at him for a few moments. “I need more than that. Tell me what factors convinced you that the Werewolf in question was behaving aggressively out of choice, rather than undergoing a temporary loss of control that might have had any of several mitigating factors. Tell me what convinced you that a—” his eyes flicked down to the report in his hand, “—twelve-year-old girl, bitten without her consent and doing her best to cope, had to die.”

Carstairs gulped. He was looking visibly uncomfortable now. “The Accords—”

“The Accords state that unless civilian life is in imminent danger, all reasonable steps must be taken to apprehend those found committing unlawful actions so that an investigation can commence.” Alec didn’t even raise his voice. “There were six of you. Even if you had somehow run out of the tranquilisers that are part of your mandated equipment—which I see from your equipment log, you had not—you have a Warlock on your team. A Warlock perfectly capable of containing a Werewolf, since he proceeded to do so.” Alec leaned forward slightly. “Was there inculpatory evidence that has not been documented? _Tell me_ what factors contributed to the order you gave your team to use _murder_ to solve the situation you encountered.”

Carstairs shook his head. “I…None, sir. The Werewolf was obviously feral, and…” He trailed off, dropping his eyes to the ground.

Alec’s voice stayed level. “If Forsyth hadn’t ignored your order and stepped in, if Fukō Riku hadn’t assisted her, then you would have been disciplined for first-degree murder. You would have been sent to the adamas mines for a minimum of ten years. The only reason I wouldn’t have had you de-runed and exiled is because the number of available Angel-blooded beings that can safely extract the adamas is currently at a crippling low. Quite frankly, your blood is more valuable than you are.

“However, because of the actions taken by these two, the actions that _you filed a disciplinary report over_ , you are merely being demoted.” He narrowed his eyes. “I will _personally_ place a martially enforced censure in your file that will ensure you are never considered for promotion again. And if you ever cross my path on a disciplinary matter in the future, you better be able to show me a squeaky-clean record, because I will _check_.”

Carstairs’ face went pale. A martial censure was no simple matter. It was an old law, rarely used in modern times but still active. It meant that if anyone wanted to promote Carstairs past the level that Alec demoted him to, it would need to go to a full hearing. At that hearing, Alec would be allowed to challenge the other party to single combat. Alec was widely considered to be the second-best warrior of his generation, behind his parabatai. Unless Carstairs somehow gained an invaluable skill essential to the Clave’s continuation, he was never going to be promoted. And Carstairs really wasn’t that bright.

Alec kept his face impassive as he watched the reality of what his future would be dawn on Carstairs’ face. “I’m sure you’ll be pleased to know that the disciplinary report you filed will be fully investigated. Now get out of my sight.” He waited until Carstairs had gone before turning his gaze back to a relieved looking Fukō and a vindicated looking Forsyth. “Now. You’ve both been accused of breaking your patrol leader’s orders in the field.” They both began to look uncertain. “That’s a serious offence, and we have several procedures that need to be followed. Do either of you refute the charges?”

“Uh, no, sir,” Forsyth said, sounding a lot less sure.

Alec looked enquiringly at Fukō, who shook his head. “I need a verbal acknowledgement,” he prompted.

“No, sir.”

“Then until further notice, you’re both placed on suspension and will no longer be rostered on patrol,” Alec said briskly. “An investigation will be carried out into your actions, and a hearing will be held in one week. If your actions are found to have been justified, then you’ll be reinstated without penalty. As this is a bit of a landmark case, penalties for unjustifiable acts are yet to be determined. According to the Initiative Charter, you will each be allowed an advocate of your choice to speak at the hearing.” He let his gaze soften. “Obviously, at this time I can’t make any predictions about how your hearing will go, but if you wish to continue to assist the Institute while you’re suspended from patrolling, then we would be grateful. Please let Underhill know what you choose, and how you can be contacted. Dismissed.”

He watched them go. Emma looked slightly confused, but Fukō murmured into her ear, and her expression changed to relief.

Well, it had to happen sooner or later. At least this one was quite clear-cut. Hopefully, everyone would pick up the messages Alec was trying to send, and the Downworld contingent wouldn’t react badly to two of their members being placed on suspension for doing the right thing.

Alec fully expected the investigation to come back, clearing both Forsyth and Fukō of any wrongdoing. He hoped that the process of investigation would reassure both groups that no-one would be running over things rough-shod. If this was going to work, everyone had to be on board.

He was starting to make progress with his paperwork when Izzy stopped by.

“I handed the armoury duty off permanently,” she informed him, taking the chair in front of his desk. “I’ll send the proper reports through to Alatini this afternoon, but I thought you’d probably like to know.”

Alec sat back. “I’m glad to hear that you’re delegating something. But why the armoury? You love weapon-smithing.”

She shrugged. “Yes, and I can still keep up with it in my spare time. My qualifications don’t automatically lapse just because I’m not in charge down there anymore.” She grinned at him impishly. “I’m worth more to you in the lab and the infirmary.”

Alec smiled back. “I’m sure Simon will be pleased that he’ll get to see you more often.”

Izzy’s smile died slightly.

Alec frowned. “Izzy? What’s wrong?”

“I’m wondering if maybe this thing with Simon might not be the best idea after all,” she said, sounding uncertain.

“Why do you say that?”

She winced. “I might not have been entirely honest with you yesterday. Simon _has_ asked me to cut back my hours; several times. But I didn’t want to, so I didn’t. It wasn’t until _you_ told me you thought I was doing too much that I really considered it. And now I don’t want to tell Simon. How can I tell him that his advice isn’t important, but the moment my brother suggests something, I immediately reconsider?”

“I can’t answer that for you.”

“He told me a couple of weeks ago that he knows how close we are, and he doesn’t mind,” Izzy went on. “But the fact that he even thought to say that annoyed me. Is it wrong? Am I doing this relationship thing wrong?”

“No,” Alec assured her. “No, Izzy, I don’t think you’re doing it wrong. Keep in mind that I might not be the best person to be asking. Firstly, I’ve only ever been romantically attached to one person, and secondly, you’re my sister! I’m always going to be on your side.” He made a slight face. “Especially when it comes to Simon.”

She looked down at her hands.

Alec couldn’t stand seeing her look so downcast. “Hey, here’s an idea. Why don’t you talk to Magnus about it? He’s had more experience than anyone else I know.” He shook his head. “Get him to tell you his count. But he’s been in a lot of relationships, some which ended well and some which ended badly. He’ll be able to give you good advice.”

“You give great advice,” Izzy assured him loyally, looking a bit happier.

Alec shrugged, not bothered. “You’re probably the only person who would ever say so.”

“I think you’d be surprised.”

They sat in silence for a moment, and then Izzy blinked as if a thought had occurred to her. “Has Mom stopped by to ask why you cancelled last night?”

“I imagine she’ll ask Magnus when she has coffee with him.” Alec looked at the time. “Asked.”

Izzy rose hurriedly. “In that case, I think that it might be in my best interests to leave you right now.”

Alec got to his feet too. “She’s not just going to storm in here.”

Izzy raised her eyebrows. “It’s cute that you think so.” She shook her head and smiled at him. “I’m really happy for you, you know? This is everything I ever wanted for you. I was so worried that you’d end up sacrificing any chance for happiness on the altar of ‘duty to the family name.’”

“Yes, I know,” Alec said, pulling her into a warm hug. “Some days I think you might even be happier about it than I am. Isn’t it funny…all those years of being careful not to put a toe out of line in service to ‘the family name’ and it’s only now that we’re charging through the world, making our own rules and living by our own creed, that ‘the family name’ has really been restored.”

“After facing down the end of the world with just a bow and a staff, I think our perspectives have shifted a bit.”

“Don’t think that I’ve forgotten that I’m only finally coming to realise what you’ve been trying to tell me for years,” Alec reminded her. “I’m sorry that you had to fight this fight all alone for so long.”

“I was never alone, Alec,” she assured him, squeezing him tightly. “You might not have agreed with me, but you never tried to stop me, and I always knew I could count on you to be there when I needed you.”

The door to Alec’s office burst open, and Maryse strode in.

“Alec! Izzy! I’m glad I caught you both! Please tell me that Magnus has been smoking some whacked out Warlock crack and you haven’t all turned into magic-wielding denizens of another realm!”

Izzy groaned and hid her face in his jacket. He could just make out her muffled words. “Oh, for fuck's sake.”

v^v^v^v

Getting Maryse calmed down turned out to be harder than Alec thought it would be. Primarily because, as well as revealing the recent changes they’d undergone, Magnus had also informed her of their unfruitful plan to restore Asmodeus to all his Greater Demon glory.

“What on earth were you thinking?” Maryse demanded. “How could you even consider such a thing? Do you imagine the Clave is going to take this knowledge lying down? They’re going to take the Institute from you, Alec! You’ll be lucky if you’re not exiled!”

“What Magnus chooses to do with his father is none of the Clave’s business,” Alec responded. “No one was harmed, and there was never any intention to harm anyone. The only ones with the right to object would be the Spiral Labyrinth—according to Magnus, they’re disinclined to meddle with what Warlocks do so long as it doesn’t involve mayhem that causes them work—or Lorenzo Rey, the High Warlock of record. He was actually _there_.”

Maryse scoffed. “Don’t be naïve, Alec! You can’t possibly think that a lack of official jurisdiction will stop the Clave from acting as they see fit? And you!” She whirled on Izzy, who had been edging slowly towards the door. “You’re supposed to be the sensible one! Why didn’t you do something about this!”

Izzy only looked shocked for a moment. “Well, that’s a change of tune.” She lifted her chin and moved back into the room. “For the record, no one actually consulted me about the advisability of taking Asmodeus back to Edom.” She let that sit there for a few seconds before raising her eyebrows. “If they had, I would have pointed out the same thing that Alec did. For all the Clave likes to posture, they only have as much power as the rest of the Shadow World gives them.”

“The Downworld has never successfully united against the Clave,” Maryse pointed out.

Izzy shrugged. “For a long time, the various factions were happy enough to fight amongst themselves and let Shadowhunters take on the bulk of the Demon-killing. Valentine’s actions, the Circle’s actions, have changed that. They’re not prepared to just sit back and allow themselves to be bossed around anymore. They’ve come to a place where they’re willing to work together. If the Clave gets in their way, starts trying to muscle their way in where they’re neither wanted nor needed, then the Downworld revolt that Idris has been so afraid of is going to happen.

“I’m sure it won’t have escaped everyone’s notice that the Shadowhunters who have the trust of the Downworld? A vast majority of them report to Alec. The rest of them are either Alec’s friends or his Allies. If the Clave wants a fight, then all they have to do is try to throw their weight around.”

Maryse looked imploringly at Alec. “Asmodeus is a Greater Demon. Surely you see why the Clave would claim jurisdiction! What of the many crimes he’s known to have been part of?”

Izzy’s eyes flashed angrily. “Stop trying to make Alec feel like he did something wrong! Magnus had every right to make his own choices when it came down to his own father. Asmodeus can’t be held accountable for any of his crimes, not when he doesn’t remember them. Even if he did, it’s not like Greater Demons are subject to the Accords!”

Maryse took a deep breath and tried again. “The Clave is going to come after you! After both of you, if you’re not careful!”

Izzy tossed her hair. “If the Clave goes after Alec, then they’re going to have to deal with something worse than an Uprising.” Izzy looked every inch the imposing warrior she had trained all her life to be. Her eyes gleamed with hints of gold, reminding Alec of Magnus’ cat-eyes. “They’ll have _me_ to worry about. The Clave isn’t ready for what I would do in defence of my brother. Not to mention his stupidly powerful husband, and the entirety of New York’s Downworld.”

Maryse blinked. She looked back and forth between Alec and Izzy a couple of times before all the fight went out of her body. She slumped into the chair Izzy had just vacated. “I need a drink,” she muttered.

Alec shrugged. “Yeah, that was our reaction yesterday.”

When Maryse looked up, that familiar fire from their youth was back in her eyes. “Right. If you insist on poking this bee’s nest, then we’re going to make sure we have every bit of protective gear we can assemble in place. I’m calling a family meeting, tonight, at the loft. Alec, Izzy, I expect you both to be there. Bring everyone who was involved with that shambles down in Edom.”

v^v^v^v

Dragging Jace away from his evening plans—he’d taken to trailing random patrols to see how long it took them to notice him—wasn’t all that difficult once Alec informed him that Maryse expected him to be there. They might be all grown now, and the relationship might have changed in the last few months, but Alec, Izzy, and Jace had spent so long with her as their commanding officer that obeying her instructions was hard-wired into them at this point.

Izzy had volunteered to contact Simon and Meliorn, leaving Alec to talk to Lorenzo. It was also his task to phone and inform his husband that Maryse had commandeered their flat for a family meeting.

“If that’s okay,” Alec finished, feeling a little uncomfortable.

“Don’t worry yourself, my love,” Magnus replied soothingly. “I was the one who got her all riled up in the first place. I confess I expected something of the kind. Our home is always open to your family, for whatever use they wish to put it to.”

“Don’t tell Jace that,” Alec said jokingly. “We might find ourselves hosting an impromptu dungeon session.”

Magnus sniffed. “There’s no such thing as an impromptu dungeon session; they require careful planning. I’ll have to explain it to you some-time. But about this evening; do you think I should invite Catarina and Ragnor?”

“If you want,” Alec said, not caring either way. “I’m not sure it’s really going to be the sort of discussion that Madzie needs to be present for.”

“You make a good point. Very well, I’m sure we can tell them anything they need to know later.”

“Asmodeus should probably be there though.”

Magnus’ voice turned amused. “Oh, I don’t think that will be a problem, dearest. Judging by his comments after Maryse left this morning, he’s quite taken with her.”

Alec blinked. That was a scenario that hadn’t presented itself to him before. “She’s with Luke.”

“I _did_ point that out, but he didn’t seem to find that much of an impediment,” Magnus replied, eyes twinkling. “Apparently, he thinks Luke’s rather easy on the eyes too.”

“Please stop telling me this,” Alec begged. “I really don’t want to be thinking about your father having a threesome with Luke and…no. Just…no!”

“Well, it’s taken your mind off your worries for a moment, hasn’t it, darling? I daresay the small matter of a closely averted apocalypse, and a bit of metaphysical adjustment look like a happy option now?”

Alec couldn’t help but smile. “Magnus, the best cure for a seemingly unsurmountable problem is not to introduce another, even worse problem.”

“Well, it’s a method that I picked up from a young Shadowhunter of my acquaintance,” Magnus admitted. “You might remember her. Whippet thin, masses of red, bouncy hair, strident voice, strong opinions.”

Alec groaned. “Please don’t tell me you’re advocating for the Clary Fray school of conflict resolution, Magnus. I don’t think I can cope.”

Magnus laughed. “I’m sure you’ll be able to convince me that other ways are better if you really put your mind to it.”

“Fine,” Alec said, trying to sound grumpy. “You wear the silver and sapphires; I’ll bring my fire helmet.”

“Why, Alexander,” Magnus breathed.

Alec cleared his throat, feeling a little bit uncomfortable talking about this at work. He still had at least two hours of paperwork before he could get away. But if he left early enough, then he and Magnus would be able to spend a little time together before everyone else arrived. “I’ll see you at three.”

“Oh, _Alexander_ ,” Magnus said again, his voice low and throaty. “I’ll be waiting.”

Alec hung up, wondering if he had any hope of concentrating on his work. For the first time in his life, he could understand the impulse to say, ‘What the hell’ and just head home.

Steeling his will, he opened the folder of requisitions that needed to be read through and approved. It was going to be a long two hours.

v^v^v^v

Alec wasn’t terribly surprised when his father sent his apologies. Robert had never been much of a hands-on parent, leaving most of their rearing to Maryse. Now that he wasn’t living in the same city as the rest of them, he seemed content to keep contact to a minimum. Alec knew that the distance hurt Izzy the most. He usually felt resentful on her behalf but was still feeling distinctly mellow after the two hours he and Magnus had spent playing Fireman Rescues Grateful Millionaire. He was feeling uncommonly charitable.

Max couldn’t make it either. The Idris trials were always held over the last and first weeks of the year, and the presentation would be held on the final day. Alec had made room in his timetable to go and support his youngest brother, and he knew Izzy and Jace had done the same. He really felt for his mother. It would be the first of their trials that she’d missed.

The first part of the evening involved Magnus, Izzy, Lorenzo, and Alec going over everything they’d discussed the day before, explaining the changes in Edom, in Magnus and Lorenzo’s magic, and in Izzy and Alec.

Jace seemed to find the whole thing hilarious. Simon and Luke listened with open-mouthed shock. Meliorn was more composed, Alec couldn’t make out any reaction, either good or bad. Maryse looked very much as though she wished that there was something she could take a seraph blade to.

As soon as their story was finished, Magnus handed out the drinks. Alec wondered if his family were in danger of becoming alcoholics.

“But wait,” Simon said, after thinking about it for a few minutes. He and Izzy had chosen not to sit together. Alec wondered if that meant that Izzy had broken up with him, but since neither of them had said anything decided that he shouldn’t either. “That means that if it’s happened to us, it’s happened to Clary too, right? She could be in danger! We need to make sure she’s okay!”

“I’ve strengthened the wards around her,” Magnus informed him. “I’ve attached sigils to several items that she carries with her everywhere; her necklace, her wallet, and her phone. I’ll be notified if anything unusual happens.”

Maryse had listened to the whole story carefully and with gritted teeth. “This may not be as bad as I first thought,” she said finally. “Are any of you able to sketch out this rune that Clary created? I want to study it.”

“Jace was always the best at recalling how obscure runes were shaped,” Alec said thoughtfully. “I confess that, at the time, I was more concerned with how long it was taking to get to Magnus. I didn’t fully pay attention to the steps involved in getting there.”

“I’ll give it a go,” Jace said with a shrug. “I wasn’t paying as much attention as I maybe should have been either.” He took the paper and pencil that Magnus offered him and began to sketch. “It went a little bit like this.”

Luke and Maryse both watched with interest as Jace drew, the pencil moving over the paper in sure motions.

“There.” Jace put the finished drawing down on the table for everyone to see. “That’s it, to the best of my memory.”

Maryse drew in a shocked breath.

“Wait,” Luke said sharply. “You’ve drawn these two pieces completely separately. Were they placed on different parties, or did both parties received both pieces?”

“Both parties received both pieces,” Alec said. “The second one kind of stung a little, but nothing too extreme.”

Simon and Jace nodded agreement. Izzy leaned over Maryse’s shoulder to get a closer look at the runes Jace had drawn.

Maryse had gone white. “Did she draw them in the same order on each of you?”

Alec pulled the drawing a bit closer. “She did this one first,” he pointed at the one on the left. “I remember thinking that it resembled the parabatai rune, a little.”

“No, she did that one second,” Simon disagreed. “That mark through the centre of the line was the last stroke.”

“Magnus?” Izzy said, looking up. “Do you remember?”

“I confess I was paying more attention to the Shadowhunter who was literally on fire right in front of me,” Magnus said. “I know that there was a rune, I know that it wasn’t in any way debilitating. I know that by the time we made it through the portal, there was no sign that a rune had ever been drawn on my skin.”

“Mine disappeared too,” Izzy confirmed. “I don’t know why I didn’t think to question this earlier. Runes always leave a mark, always. The only thing that can make them disappear is a glamour.”

“Or de-runing,” Maryse said, still looking pale. “The Silent Brothers use an ancient artefact. They re-draw each of the runes with a stele so dark that light seems to be sucked into it. It’s agonisingly painful, and when it’s complete, it’s as if the runes had never existed.” She shuddered.

It was the most Maryse had ever said about the ritual that had ended her life as a Shadowhunter. The whole process was a Clave secret, not talked about and thus much whispered about. Alec could remember talking about it with Izzy and Jace before they’d passed their final trials, rumours spoken softly in hidden corners. To be de-runed by the Clave was considered a fate worse than death by many Nephilim. Not many survived it for long.

Magnus stiffened in shock at her description. “Absorbs light and shadows? You mean, like this?” He snapped his fingers and a sharp, wicked-looking knife encased in crystal appeared in his hands. At first, it looked like ordinary dark steel, but it soon started emanating a dark chill that gradually deepened. All the warmth in the loft seemed to be sucked away, and the steel grew even blacker. It was an ominous feeling. Alec felt uncomfortable being that close to it, and his hands twitched. He suddenly wanted his bow very badly.

Maryse nodded and let out a choked sob. Luke enfolded her in his arms.

It was Lorenzo’s turn to grow pale. “Bane! You have a St—”

“Do not speak its name!” Magnus snapped.

“—a cursed blade? Do you have any idea how dangerous that is, what could happen if the wrong person got hold of it?”

The knife somehow continued to grow darker, and the chill was so pronounced that Alec could see his own breath vapour. Asmodeus leaned forward with apparent interest but made no attempt to reach out and touch it.

Magnus snapped his fingers again. The blade disappeared, and the room immediately began to warm up again. “Do you take me for a simpleton, Rey, of course I know!” he said irritably. “I’ve been around for centuries, please desist from trying to teach me my own craft!

“They are forbidden!” Lorenzo said, starting to look angry. “For good reason! How could you think…why on earth would you…tell me you did not create such a thing!”

“What on earth would give you the I idea that I forged it myself?” Magnus demanded, eyes flashing. “It was something that I picked up over a hundred years ago, during that whole business with Axel Mortmain. I believe you will agree that my hands are more reliable than his were?”

Lorenzo subsided slightly. “Well, if you want to put it like that, I sup—”

“Having found myself in possession of such a thing, what _precisely_ would the High Warlock of Brooklyn suggest that I do with it?” Magnus asked eyebrows raised challengingly. “Which of my brethren would you counsel me to entrust with its security? You?”

“Magnus, what _was_ that?” Alec asked, shaking his shoulders to get rid of the tension that had filled them while that dagger was there. The rest of the room looked similarly discomfited although, by the horrified look he was directing at Magnus, only Meliorn seemed to have any idea what the Warlocks were talking about.

Magnus broke the stare down he was having with Lorenzo. “That, my dear Alexander, was a…no, I will not mention its name. It’s unnecessary, and frankly just knowing it could put you in danger. Let’s just say that it’s a forbidden forged item. The Spiral Labyrinth has decreed that any who are implicated in the creation of those items are to be immediately put to death, with everything they own destroyed.” He sent a sharp glance Lorenzo’s way. “I assure you that I have never used it, nor do I intend to. I—and some close friends—removed it from the hands of the man I believe to be its creator. Together we determined that I would be the best person to keep it safe.”

“It is good for you that I know you are a man who can be trusted,” Meliorn said seriously. “Otherwise it would likewise be my duty to strike _you_ down. Our King has declared such things to be abominations. I know not how they are created and do not wish to. My King has decreed that any such that come to our attention are to be destroyed.”

“I would gladly destroy it,” Magnus said, eyebrows still high. “Provided someone can tell me just how such a thing is achieved.” He sent a scathing glance Lorenzo’s way. “I have discovered two methods, neither of which are what I would call safe. They involve considerable danger, not only to me but also to the continent I happen to be standing on at the time. I _know_ what happened to Atlantis! Remember also that I must somehow obtain this information without alerting all and sundry to the blade’s existence, and my knowledge of its whereabouts.”

Meliorn met his eyes. “I must inform my King that you have this; my oaths allow nothing less. He will no doubt demand that some action is taken. For all that he is quick to judge, he is known to be open to reason.” He winced, and some of his formality dropped away. “This…is probably a good time. With the Queen’s recent…malefactions…known by all, there will be room to bargain.”

“I will _not_ release the dagger to the Unseelie King,” Magnus warned him. “However, I’m open to learning how to destroy it, and I’m willing to allow him to send a representative to observe when I do so. Until then, it’s safest where it is.”

Meliorn considered that. “I believe that will be acceptable.”

“Well, Lorenzo?” Magnus’ tone could have cut diamond.

Lorenzo set his jaw stubbornly, before relaxing with a sigh. “Fine. Do what you want, Bane. You always do anyway.”

Magnus softened. “You _do_ see why I would keep such a thing secret?”

Lorenzo nodded. “I do.” He frowned slightly, his gaze sharpening as it narrowed in on Maryse, who was still being comforted by Luke. “You tell us that the Clave has a St—”

“Must I repeat myself? Do _not_ name it!” Magnus interrupted. “Let us instead say that the Clave has a cursed item whose creation is proscribed by every Shadow World government that I know of. Including their own. If it is in the form of a stele…”

“Then they created it themselves,” Lorenzo finished. He shuddered. “If Valentine had known of it…if he had managed to acquire it and put it to use...”

“We already know that they use it.” Meliorn’s voice was flat. “My King will be…displeased…to hear such a thing.” He rose to his feet and bowed to Maryse. “You have my respect. To undergo the direct touch of such a thing and to emerge with your mind intact…it shows a formidable character indeed.” The edge of his mouth twitched upwards, and his glance slid over to Isabelle so briefly as to seem almost accidental.

Izzy was wearing a thunderous frown that Alec could feel mirrored on his own face. Jace didn’t look any happier.

“You know what,” Alec said. “You’re right, it’s probably better that we don’t know more about this, whatever it is. But now I’ve got a new goal.”

“ _We’ve_ got a new goal,” Jace corrected him.

“Let’s not get carried away,” Maryse said, regaining some semblance of her usual composure. “The Clave and its practices aren’t going anywhere, so let’s deal with what’s in front of us before we start looking for new crusades.”

Alec exchanged looks with his siblings. They were absolutely all on the same page. They would let this drop for now, but in the future, there would be a reckoning. A glance over at Magnus showed that he was observing them thoughtfully. Alec raised his eyebrows in slight challenge.

Magnus gave an infinitesimal nod and then turned his attention to Maryse. “Before we got side-tracked, there seemed to be something about the runes that concerned you.”

Maryse traced her index finger over the two marks that made up the rune that Clary had drawn on them. “This one here has several similarities to the parabatai rune,” she said. “This one…is almost a twisted reflection of the other.” She looked up at them. “I’m not sure how much knowledge you have about demonic runes? Magnus, I know you must have a level of proficiency, based on your work with Henry Branwell in constructing the portals.”

Magnus tilted his head to one side and examined what Jace had drawn again. “Yes, I see what you mean, Maryse. This second one could be a variation of a binding rune…I confess my interest in demonic runology has waned somewhat in the last century. It was only ever a hobby, and when Henry passed on, I lost much of my enthusiasm for it.”

Maryse sat back with a sigh. “I’m beginning to…I think I know why the Angels were so upset with Clary. It was nothing to do with what she did to Jonathon after all. _This_ —” she poked at the page with her finger, “—is what concerned them.”

Magnus was still examining both marks. “Hmm…yes…with the horizontal line, and then...” He tilted his head the other way and then turned the page around. His eyebrows shot up. “Yes…my goodness. I wonder why I never noticed that before?”

“This is no time to be cryptic,” Lorenzo said testily.

Magnus looked up. His eyes had started to glow again. “Maryse was correct, the rune on the right has elements from demonic rune structures that I’m familiar with. The left hand one,” he held the page the right way up so that they could all see it, “the one that Maryse said reminded her of the parabatai rune? If you drew it upside down, then it also has aspects of demonic runes.” He turned the page around and traced one of the curves with his forefinger.

Luke leaned forward. “Yes, I see what you mean,” he murmured. “It’s the same with the other one, but in reverse. But surely just turning a rune upside down doesn’t change its meaning or function.”

“It would depend on what order you drew the strokes in,” Alec pointed out. “We’re taught that the order, direction, depth, and speed of the strokes can also affect the rune’s function. That’s at the very heart of runology.”

Luke raised his eyebrows. “I don’t know what _you_ were taught, but when I was learning, we were more concerned with rote repetition. We drew the runes in the way we were instructed until we could draw them blindfolded. We certainly weren’t schooled in the theory behind _stroke order_.” Everyone looked to Maryse.

Maryse shrugged. “I was trying to raise three brilliant children to be a credit to the Lightwood name, while simultaneously keeping them from dangerous subjects that would draw negative attention from the Clave. They’ve received rather deep instruction in a variety of the more esoteric disciplines. Quite frankly, it was a difficult job finding inoffensive topics to keep their interest.”

Izzy laughed. “Well, that explains why I always seemed to get lumped with idiots when we went to Idris for the trials.”

Jace snorted. “You remember when Jorge Stormvale told you that being a know-it-all was unattractive? And that he was going to show you that fighting skills were more important to succeeding as a Shadowhunter than knowing the exact tensile strength of the Honjo Masamune?”

Alec smirked. _He_ certainly remembered. He always enjoyed watching his sister beat sense into ignorant dickheads who thought that, since she was gorgeous and relatively small, she was easy prey.

Izzy sniffed. “I’ve fought Mundanes that lasted longer in a fight than he did.”

Maryse rolled her eyes. “I got a complaint from his parents, you know. They objected to you breaking both his arms. It meant he couldn’t hold his stele well enough to use the bone-setter, and he had to forfeit the trial. That lack of ranking had enough of an impact on his evaluation to set him back two years.”

Simon blinked. “I take it two years is bad?”

“Finishing his training two years after his peers would have a lifelong impact on his career,” Luke explained, shaking his head. “Did you really have to break both his arms? It seems harsh.”

“She did him a favour,” Alec said, folding his arms. “Jorge Stormvale’s standard runes were pretty shoddy; if he’d tried using a bone-setter with his non-dominant hand, he might have killed himself.”

“I know,” Izzy agreed. “Which is why I did it. I thought about breaking his legs as well, but it was only the second day of the trials, and the whole point was that I didn’t want him to die, so…”

“Thank the Angel for small mercies,” Maryse muttered. “I thought that once you were grown, you’d stop regularly causing me stress. How mistaken I was.”

“I wish I could tell you that it got easier, but that would be a lie,” Magnus said sympathetically. He twisted the paper around again. “I really wish I could talk to Biscuit about this, find out what was going through her head when she drew these.”

“Clary said they just come to her,” Simon put in. “She told me that some of them were visions and that those ones were from Ithuriel, but others just made sense.”

Magnus sighed. “Combining angelic and demonic runes doesn’t ‘make sense,’ Steve. We’re lucky that she didn’t just blow you all up the moment she tried to apply them.”

“Hey, they worked, didn’t they?” Simon defended.

“The Angels were pretty pissed,” Jace recalled. “Knowing what we know now, I’m surprised they didn’t just appear and smite us all if they hated it so much.”

“What I want to know,” Simon said heatedly, “is why the Angels got hot and bothered enough about Clary to take her runes away and wipe her mind, but didn’t seem to care what Jonathon was doing. He sliced a rift open between Alicante and a demonic realm! And they did nothing!”

“You make a good point,” Magnus agreed. “The Angels disapproved when she drew them, but not enough to intervene. Then, after we returned from Edom, they gave her an ultimatum. An ultimatum that anyone who knew her would have known that she would not abide by.”

“That means that what happened down in Edom either angered or worried them,” Izzy continued. “Or both.”

Meliorn had been listening intently. “Pass me your witchlight,” he said abruptly to Izzy. She raised her eyebrows but did as he asked.

The glowing stone didn’t dim when it changed hands. Meliorn didn’t say anything, just handed the stone to Simon. The glow remained steady.

Simon gulped. “This is not good.”

“Give it here, Mr Blue,” Lorenzo said. He held the glowing stone in his hand and examined it. “I think we’re getting a little closer to the answer.” He passed the stone to Alec, who gave it to Magnus. The glow remained steady. Magnus passed it to Asmodeus. It immediately started glowing a dark red.

“Well, we know it works,” Magnus said. He lifted his hand and gazed at it while his fingers twitched. Blue mist emerged from his fingertips to swirl around his hand in a sinuous dance. “My magic looks the same. And it doesn’t feel any different.”

Lorenzo was doing something similar with his golden magic.

Alec reached out to run his fingers through the magic in Magnus’ hands. He loved the feel of it; it always felt slightly tingly, like a miniature electrical storm. Today, it reacted to his touch by pressing against his fingers like a pleased cat. Alec dropped his hand, startled. “It’s never done that before.”

Magnus and Lorenzo exchanged glances. Magnus made a ball of blue flame which he passed to Alec. Lorenzo made one of gold which he handed to Jace, who gave it to Simon. Simon tried to pass it to Luke, but the moment Simon was no longer touching it, it dissolved into the air.

Magnus’ blue flame went from Alec, to Izzy, to Meliorn. Meliorn gazed at it consideringly, then offered it to Maryse.

No one seemed in the least surprised when the blue evaporated.

“So much for temporary,” Alec said with a sigh.

Asmodeus had been sitting to one side, watching the events of the evening avidly. He laughed, drawing everyone’s attention to him. “The lot of you are all _much_ more entertaining than anything I’ve found on Netflix. Why don’t I just say what you’re all tiptoeing around? Whatever those runes did, whatever happened in Edom with the heavenly fire and Lilith’s death, you are now _all_ different than you were. No longer Nephilim, no longer Warlocks, or Seelie, or Vampires. What’s more, whatever you have become scared the Angels enough that they immediately acted to stop your friend from placing her new runes on anyone else.”

They all stared at him.

Simon got to his feet. “If I’m not properly a Vampire anymore, does that mean that I can eat normal food? Cause if I can, then I’m going out to get some latkes right now.”

“No need to rush off, Solomon,” Magnus said, flicking his fingers and then handing over a small plate with three latkes on it. “Go on, see what you think.”

Simon lifted one slowly to his mouth, took a deep breath, closed his eyes and took a bite.

Alec realised he was holding his breath. He wasn’t even sure what he wanted to happen, whether Simon being able to eat food again would be a good thing or a bad thing.

Simon opened his eyes again, and then let out a pornographic moan.

Magnus raised his eyebrows. “Well, I think that answers that question.”

“I don’t even need to wait to see if I feel sick!” Simon declared around a mouth half full of potato cake. “The taste alone…I didn’t realise how _dull_ everything tasted! Someone, order me a pizza! Oh god, I’ve got to tell Clary! She’ll be so…” His face fell. “Thrilled.”

Alec felt a twinge of sympathy. “If we’ve discovered what it was that the Angels wanted to keep hidden enough that they risked intervening, is that going to make getting them to give Clary’s memories back easier or harder?”

Meliorn shook his head. “What reason do these Angels have to do anything that you want? Their reason for taking her memories has not grown less. No, I would even say it has grown _more_. Now that we _know_ what her runes can do…”

“But why do they care?” Simon asked, carefully picking up the last crumbs of latke and licking them off his fingers.

“Because Angels are arrogant beings of power that don’t like change?” Lorenzo suggested. He rolled his eyes at the shocked look Maryse and Luke sent him. “Oh, come now. Don’t tell me you still believe all those children’s tales the Nephilim tell each other about the goodness of the Angels. Angels and Demons are in conflict. Both have involved humanity in their struggles, treating us as if we are stones in a cosmic game of Go. Angelic power and demonic power have been balanced for aeons, and that’s the way they like it.”

Magnus nodded. “I’m sure we can all name elders who are so set in their ways that they’re deaf to anything other than what they know to be ‘right.’ Now imagine that sort of mindset with thousands of years of weight behind it.”

Alec’s brain flooded with horror as the truth of the matter dawned on him. “It’s you two,” he said, glancing between Izzy and Magnus. “What happened to you two, what you’ve become. Magnus, with the power of a demonic realm and the knowledge of how to use it; and Izzy, infused with enough heavenly fire to destroy one of the more powerful Greater Demons in her own realm…now you’re joined, sharing strengths…the strengths of both sides. You’re upsetting the balance.”

“They’re freaking out,” Jace concluded. “They tried to forbid Clary to use her new runes again, and then when she ignored their decree, they stripped her memories from her. They must have hoped that without her as a catalyst we would remain ignorant of what had occurred.”

“Which we very well might have,” Izzy mused. “With Clary out of the way we took a step back and started to focus on rebuilding what Valentine and Jonathon had tried to tear down. Who knows if we ever would have come to realise the truth.”

“But then the Travellers arrived,” Lorenzo continued. “Amongst them a being that turned our focus once again onto Edom and the events that took place there.”

Everyone turned to look at Asmodeus. He sat with folded arms, a sardonic smile gracing his usually saturnine countenance. He inclined his head in a short, mocking bow. “Happy to be of service.”

Simon stared at his hands. “Meliorn was right. The angels aren’t going to help us. If Ithuriel was still alive…”

Jace frowned. “Hang on. Is Ithuriel really dead? I thought we’d established that Angels and Demons can only be killed in their own realms? Does that mean that he’s hanging out in whatever angelic realm he belongs to?”

“Ithuriel was killed by Lilith,” Magnus reminded him. “Lilith was a Greater Demon. Greater Demons and Angels generally don’t mix it up down here with us part-mundanes unless the circumstances are exceptional, so we don’t have a lot of information about what happens. It’s possible that she completely destroyed him. We don’t know.”

Izzy shook her head. “Even if Ithuriel isn’t dead, he’s clearly not willing to help us. We need to stop wasting time going over ‘what-ifs,’ and deal with what we’ve got. The way that I see it, if those of us who went to Edom really _are_ a new demon/angel/human hybrid, then Alec, Jace, Clary, and I are no longer obliged to look to Raziel or the other Angels for guidance.”

“She’s right,” Magnus said abruptly. “Together, we wield the power of a realm. That puts us on the same level, politically at least, as a Greater Demon or an Arch Angel. And Clarissa belongs to us, not to them.”

“What are you suggesting?” Maryse asked sharply.

Magnus met her gaze with glowing eyes. “I’m not suggesting anything, I’m stating a fact. The Angels don’t have the jurisdiction over her that we assumed they did. That information could become a handy bargaining chip if we discover how to wield it appropriately.”

“What if revealing that we know about it backfires?” Luke challenged. “Regardless of anything else, they still clearly have the power to affect those of us with Angel blood.”

Lorenzo nodded to Magnus. His eyes were glowing faintly too. “Magnus isn’t suggesting we leap up and make accusations,” he explained. “However, our leverage in any discussion about the restoration of her memories has increased. It’s a trick card that they won’t expect us to have, and therefore valuable.”

Maryse took a deep breath. “If you travel this path, you might very well end up severing ties with the Clave. I beg of you all, consider the full ramifications of your actions before you proceed. Think of the good that you’re doing in the Shadow World right now, the strides that the New York Institute has been taking.”

Luke laid his hand over hers in support. “I agree. Let’s not do anything rash. We have time to work out what we want to do, and right now Clary isn’t going anywhere. As the closest thing she has to family, I’m going to want more assurances than you’ve given tonight before I agree to you subjecting her to even more upheaval.”

Simon sat up, leaning forward. “But, Luke, we can make them _fix_ her.”

“Or, the Angels might decide that she’s too dangerous to live,” Magnus said, with a nod to Luke.

Jace set his jaw. “But we’ve all agreed that the release of Valentine’s documentation will make her a target. Don’t we owe it to her to do our best to restore what the Angels took?”

“Clary knew what she was risking when she used that rune to kill Jonathon,” Maryse reminded him. “She didn’t fight the punishment the Angels handed down. We should respect that.”

Simon scoffed. “How could she have possibly known what the Angels would do to her?”

Alec wanted to make a pithy comment about Clary’s history of doing whatever she wanted without regard to the likely consequences of her actions but realised that it probably wouldn’t help. Instead, he raised his voice so that it would be heard above what was rapidly developing into an argument. “Let’s table this discussion for now. There’s currently no urgency, and we’re all very busy people. We should all go away and think about things. Next Monday we’ll bring our thoughts together and discuss our options like calm, rational adults.”


	7. Chapter 7

## Chapter seven

Alec was still working on getting the December monthly reports into a state ready to be submitted to the Clave when his mini-Council arrived to go over the findings from Valentine’s bunker. Everything they’d found had been sorted, copied, compiled, and now they were awaiting Alec’s final order before releasing it.

“Some of it’s pretty grim reading,” Alatini said, looking slightly sick. “Most of the time he comes off as completely deranged, but some of his ideas are…” He shook his head. “I really don’t know if we want to make thoughts like this public. What if we’re just giving other twisted sickos a template for their perversion?”

“Reading this stuff isn’t going to make people into psychos,” Underhill disagreed. “Knowing the depravities that Valentine sunk to might stop others from trying to emulate him.”

Izzy tapped her fingernails thoughtfully on the table. “The positives and negatives do a reasonable job of cancelling each other out, as far as concerns about the influence the knowledge will have on the Shadowhunter community,” she stated. “We can deal with that as and when it occurs. The most important reason to get this information out is to show the Downworld that when we say we want honesty and transparency, we mean it.”

“If we try to hide some of Valentine’s crimes, it might look like we’re sympathetic to his cause,” Alec agreed. “His Circle was a stain on the Clave, one that they tried to cover over rather than remove. We all know how that went. Our only options are to emulate the Clave and hide this, or let everyone see the whole gory truth.” He got up from the table and looked out the window. “Psychos are going to be psychos, no matter what information they have access to. The Downworld is owed this.”

“We’re really going to do this.” Alatini sounded apprehensive

Alec squared his shoulders and turned back to his mini-Council. “By my authority as Head of the New York Institute, I order you all to initiate Plan VOB3.2, approved yesterday. The first section contains instructions for the dissemination of the information we recovered from Valentine’s Ottawa bunker on the 24th of December. This is to be begun immediately, and I expect all steps to be complete by the end of the day. Thank you for all of your hard work. Dismissed.”

Underhill and Alatini just nodded before leaving, but Jace and Izzy lingered.

“Don’t try and take all of the blame for this one, Alec,” Jace said seriously. “Izzy and I are right behind you, you know that. Let us take some of the heat.”

Alec shook his head. “Ultimately, it’s my decision, Jace. The responsibility is mine, and I’ll take whatever consequences that come. If the worst happens and I end up exiled, then the two of you will still be here to continue the work that we’ve begun.”

Izzy scoffed. “Like we’re going to hang around to be Clave stooges if they’re so up their own asses that they can’t see that you’re the best thing to happen to them in centuries.”

“She’s right,” Jace said when Alec shook his head. “You’re almost solely responsible for the unprecedented amount of co-operation that we’ve been receiving from the Downworld leadership.”

“The two of you—Izzy in particular—were trusted by various Downworld elements long before I got my head out of my ass,” Alec objected.

Izzy gave a slow nod. “Perhaps. But we weren’t doing anything with it, Alec. _You’re_ the one who’s driving widespread change. You’re the one everyone is looking to. You’re always so ready to take responsibility when things go wrong; you need to start taking responsibility when things go right as well.” She hugged him, hard. “If the Clave tries to get rid of you for doing the right thing, then Jace and I—and quite a few others—will be defecting right along with you. We can start up our own organisation, the Lightwoods. We can be based in Edom, and we’ll kick ass all over the place with none of this bullshit bureaucracy to hold us back.”

Alec hugged her back. “Bureaucracy is one of those unavoidable evils, Izzy,” he informed her, feeling better almost despite himself. “In the right hands, it’s as deadly a weapon as my bow. But I get your meaning. The primary reason that I made it a direct order is for protection. Right now, there’s really not much they can overtly do to me other than dismiss me. The rest of you—especially Underhill and Alatini—don’t have that security. In a way, they’re risking more, because other than Dad and Max, everyone I care about is already in on this, I know they support it. I’m pretty sure Max will come down on our side, and Dad…” Alec shrugged. “There’s not much I can do about that.”

Izzy released him. “I suppose I better go and get on with getting all this explosive stuff out there where it can blow the Clave’s collective tiny mind. I’ll see you later on. I’ll come over to your place tonight, and we can make a spirited attempt to clean out Magnus’ drinks trolley.”

“I’ll warn him to have the hangover potion ready.”

Two hours later, Alec received his first outraged phone call.

v^v^v^v

Magnus took one look at his face when he got home that evening and got out his favourite body oils.

“Whose great idea was it to release all of Valentine’s data out into the world, anyway?” Alec groaned as Magnus’ talented fingers worked his trapezius.

“I think it was your parabatai who suggested it first,” Magnus murmured. He shifted his weight where it was resting on Alec’s ass, making him groan for an entirely different reason. “You know, there are various ways to relieve tension. After I’ve finished with your massage, do you think you will be _up_ to exploring some of the other variations?” On the word ‘up’ he shifted his weight again in an unsubtle suggestion.

This time Alec’s groan was one of disappointment. “No time,” he groused. “Izzy and Jace are coming over, and we’re going to spend the evening drowning our sor _rows_.” His voice went up at the end there when Magnus’ thumb dug into a particularly sensitive spot.

“Will you be wanting my special remedies in the morning?”

“If you’ve got some, that would be much appreciated,” Alec said gratefully. “If not, then it won’t be the first time we’ve all gone in with hangovers.”

“I’m going to need to do some more brewing,” Magnus mused. “I wonder if I’ve got enough kelpie blood?”

“Feel free to send Jace out to get what you need,” Alec offered.

Asmodeus wandered past the recently conjured padded table and into the kitchen, looking like a fashion editor’s idea of an artist. The smell of oil paint and turpentine followed him. “I’ve been trying to capture what Edom looks like, but I need new brushes,” he announced as he rummaged through the fridge. “The ones I have aren’t doing the job.”

Magnus’ sigh was dramatic. “Is the credit card I gave you no longer working? You’re free to order whatever you like.”

Asmodeus slammed the fridge closed. “I need to go to an art shop, Magnus! I want to be able to test the bristles in person. I’ve also been thinking about incorporating a lino-print method, but I really need to talk about it with someone who’s versed in the subject.”

“By all means, _go_ to an art shop!” Magnus said irritably, his touch turning from seductive to brisk. “No one is stopping you!”

Asmodeus sniffed and wandered over to watch what they were doing. “What is _stopping_ me, is that I have no idea where I should be going or who I should be talking to,” he pointed out. “You’ll need to arrange for someone to come with me. Preferably someone who knows their way around.”

The mood had been thoroughly broken. Alec wasn’t particularly body-shy, but his father-in-law walking in on a moment that had—for all its outward innocence—been heading steadily towards bedroom activities made him feel uncomfortable about all the skin he was displaying. His feelings must have transmitted themselves to Magnus through his skin because only moments later, he gave Alec’s back one last rub before getting down. Alec immediately reached for his t-shirt, pulling it over his head with some relief.

The faint disappointment he thought he saw on Asmodeus’ face only reinforced his feelings on the matter.

“I suppose I could send Simon along,” Magnus said thoughtfully, rubbing the oil that still coated his fingers into his hands slowly. “I’m sure Biscuit made a habit of toting him along with her when sourcing her own art supplies. If nothing else, it might distract him from his romantic woes.”

Alec took the opportunity to escape the conversation. He didn’t feel comfortable talking about Izzy’s love life right now. He’d never liked the idea of Simon as a partner for her, and hearing that they were having problems made a small, mean, part of him satisfied and pleased. A much more significant part of him was concerned about Izzy and how she was coping. He wondered if she had anyone other than Magnus to talk about these things with. Jace was preoccupied, Alec was hardly an expert, and Clary was out of the picture. Even if she’d been there, she was Simon’s friend before Izzy’s, so she probably wouldn’t be terribly helpful anyway.

Perhaps Maryse? Alec considered that for a moment before shaking his head. Possible, but not probable. Hopefully, Izzy would let him know what was happening when she’d sorted everything out to her liking.

He opened the fridge to see if there were enough leftovers that they wouldn’t have to bother with ordering dinner. “One of these days I really need to learn to cook,” he muttered as he cautiously sniffed a container of lemon chicken. He wrinkled his nose. Nope.

He turned to throw it in the rubbish bin, just in time to catch his husband’s appalled reaction.

Magnus quickly smiled. “Why change a winning formula? A delightful, tasty, gourmet, epicurean experience is only a wave of the fingers away.”

Alec stared at him. “You don’t think I can do it, do you?”

“I don’t think that you _need_ to do it,” Magnus temporised. “Really, darling, you’re so busy all the time. Let me do this for you. Now, is there anything you’d like?” He waved his fingers in the air, with such a hopeful expression on his face that Alec couldn’t deny him.

“Maybe something spicy,” Alec decided. “It’s been a while since we had a proper curry.” The cooking lessons idea could wait for another time. One where Asmodeus wasn’t watching the exchange with barely concealed interest. Right now, it was more important to eat something to prepare for the night ahead.

v^v^v^v

Since becoming the Institute Head, Alec didn’t spend nearly as much time as he used to in the Ops Centre. There was no time, administrative tasks, keeping up with the comings and goings of the myriad of personnel, and the nitty-gritty of Shadowhunter life took up the bulk of his day. He’d started making a point to spend at least half an hour a day down on the floor. Sometimes he needed the familiar bustle to soothe his frayed nerves.

This was one of those days.

The Clave Council, no doubt gathered in another emergency session to try and work out what they wanted to do with the bomb Alec had dropped on the Shadow World, called to berate him.

The thing that annoyed him most was that the whole exercise was a waste of everybody’s time.

Representatives for the Spiral Labyrinth, the Praetor Lupus, and the Unseelie King had already made public statements supporting both Alec’s actions and ‘the Clave’s new dedication to transparency in their dealings.’

Everyone involved knew that such high approval, combined with his visibility, limited what the Clave could do to him as a direct result of his actions. The Downworld wouldn’t stand for it, and Shadowhunter numbers were at the lowest they’d been in centuries. Any punishment the Clave wanted to give him would have to be long term and focused on a different matter entirely.

It was pointless, and Alec needed to take a break and refocus his mind.

He was listening intently to his people plan to take care of a nesting Kuri that had been detected in Cunningham Park when a trickle of cold slithered up his spine.

He didn’t know how he knew, but something, somewhere, was going wrong.

“Alec!” Izzy called from across the room. “Alec, there’s something—” Before she could finish what she was saying, a portal unexpectedly opened up in the Ops Centre.

This was alarming. The Institute was supposed to be warded against incoming unsecured portals. Alec was already reaching for the knife that he’d taken to wearing on his belt when he realised that he could feel the unmistakable tingle of Magnus’ magic. He hesitated for a moment, then drew his knife. Best to be prepared, and he couldn’t think of any happy or fun reason that Magnus would have done this.

A moment later, Simon stumbled through, looking like he’d been rolling around in an abattoir. The portal winked close behind him.

Alec peripherally noticed that the people around him dropped their battle-ready stances, and made a mental note to follow up on that with Underhill and Jace later.

“Simon!” Izzy said, appearing at his side and reaching out to him with both hands. “Are you okay?”

“I was barely scratched, most of this blood isn’t mine,” Simon said, looked wildly around the Ops Centre before focusing on Alec. “It’s Asmodeus’. We were attacked on Rockwell, almost where it intersects with Fulton. Magnus is going to open a portal directly there in five minutes. He said to bring everyone you can spare.”

“How many attackers?” Alec asked, signalling Benedict Wentworth, a member of Underhill’s security group, to bring his gear. He strode over to the nearest workstation, nodding in thanks at the group using it who were already saving their work and getting ready to get out of his way.

“A lot,” Simon said, shifting his weight uncomfortably at Alec’s side. “Six? Over five, at least. I wasn’t really counting them. Alec…they tried to disguise themselves—you know, masks, hoods, black leather cat-suits—but they were definitely Shadowhunters.”

Alec stiffened. “They _what_?”

The Ops Centre, which had begun to return to its usual bustle once the portal situation had been resolved, went utterly silent.

“How sure are you?” Izzy asked, her voice like the crack of her whip.

Simon hung his head miserably. “I only saw runes on two of them, but they were unmistakable. The others _could_ have been Downworlders or Demons, I suppose, but they moved like Shadowhunters.”

“Did Magnus suggest we bring a medic?” Alec asked shortly, eyes and fingers flicking over the display in front of him. The sensor information confirmed Simon’s story, the only signs of demonic blood in that area of Brooklyn were Magnus’ familiar icon, located right next to another one that would have to be Asmodeus.

“Magnus was calling Catarina as he opened the portal,” Simon reported. “Would Shadowhunter medics even be able to help?”

Alec shook his head. “Magnus would have said something if he wanted medical aid. If I’m wrong, we can just portal any injured straight to the infirmary. Izzy, get some extra restraints and a blade that Simon can use. Simon…be ready to go,” Alec cast a swift glance around at the people available, focusing on two recently returned patrol groups that still looked relatively fresh. “I’ll take two teams with me. T9 and T14, have you seen combat today?”

“No, sir,” answered Reo Kaido, leader of T9.

Marta Coldridge of T14 was standing at attention, almost bursting with eagerness. “We ran into a lone Croucher, sir, but we followed standard procedure, no special skills required, and we were able to terminate it in under a minute without making physical contact.”

“Both of you are with me,” Alec ordered. “Make sure your teams are in order, and your gear is compliant with regulations.”

“Alec!” Jace arrived at a run. A quick glance showed Alec that his parabatai was fully equipped. “Magnus called. He said he had the situation contained for the moment but that a portal would be opening to his location in a couple of minutes.”

“Jace, take charge of T14,” Alec said, just as Izzy and Simon reappeared and Wentworth returned with Alec’s gear, handing it over one piece at a time. “T9, report to Izzy. Our first priority is containing the situation and making sure none of the assailants escape. If Magnus tells you to do something, I expect you to do it. Underhill, until we get back with more information about who these Shadowhunters are, I want the Institute on blue alert.”

The portal opened, and Alec led his team through to where Magnus was waiting.

v^v^v^v

“Alexander!” Magnus’ tone was jovial, but his face was anything but. He was standing in the centre of the street, his right arm held up, palm open and fingers splayed. His left was directing a continuous stream of magic at a grey-faced, twitching Asmodeus who lay crumpled at his feet. Up and down the street were various black-clad figures, frozen in place like living statues, a shimmering veil of blue explaining their paralysis. “So glad you could make it!”

“Are you alright?” Alec demanded as the last of his hastily assembled group followed him out of the portal.

“I’m uninjured, dearest,” Magnus replied tightly. “My father, however, appears to be suffering from the aftereffects of being hit by poisoned arrows. In the usual way of things, a ‘mortal’ wound taken on this plane would be nothing more than an inconvenience. Given the indeterminate nature of his current existence, I thought that it was better to err on the side of caution and ensure that he doesn’t snuff it prematurely.”

“What do you need us to do?” Alec asked. “Simon said that you had already called Cat.”

“I thought you might be good enough to take these decidedly rude people off my hands,” Magnus’ attention was mostly on his father, who hadn’t moved. “They’re rather in the way; it’s tiresome to have to divide my attention like this.”

Alec nodded, as though the rather astonishing feat of magic that was being played out in front of him was a commonplace occurrence rather than the impressive display of power and precision that it actually was. “Are there any others aside from the ones I can see?” He did a quick count. “Eight Shadowhunters? In a failed ambush where your target numbered two? I don’t know whether to be pleased that you failed, or disgusted. Magnus, you can drop your spell. Izzy, bind them. The rest of you, I want one of you to a prisoner.”

If Izzy was a little rougher than she really needed to be, none of Alec’s team complained.

“So, there’s not going to be any fighting?” Jace complained. “I was looking forward to fileting some dickheads. Izzy gave me this new knife to try out.”

Alec shrugged. “If you get lucky, one of them might try to make a break for it. At that point they’re resisting arrest and fleeing, so you can do what you want. It’s not like we’ll have to answer to the Downworld about brutality.”

Jace perked up visibly and trotted over to where the attackers were being herded into a small area. They shrank back from his approach.

Izzy finished what she was doing. “Simon, please go with Jace and make sure these idiots are put behind bars. You’ll need to stay with them until other Downworld representatives can arrive to oversee matters.”

Alec raised an eyebrow. “You’re not going with them?”

“I’ll stay as your backup.” She met his gaze squarely. “The Institute Head shouldn’t be out in the field without at least one guard, Alec, and you know it.”

“Fine. Magnus, a portal, if you would?”

Alec watched as Jace, Simon, T9 and T14 marched the eight black-clad attackers through. As soon as the portal was closed, he dropped his air of disinterest and knelt beside Asmodeus, checking him over gently. “Did Cat give you an ETA?” Even as he finished speaking, Magnus’ phone started ringing.

Moments later, Catarina and Ragnor arrived through the portal that Magnus had made for them. Catarina immediately took over from Magnus, while Ragnor cast a swift, assessing glance over the scene. When he was done, he scowled furiously at Alec.

During their previous interactions, Ragnor had seemed handsome, charming in a dry English fashion, and fond of dark, wry humour. There had been no indication of the intimidating power that was on display now. Ragnor Fell was _not happy_ , and he was quite ready to let everyone in the vicinity know about it.

“Oh, don’t be absurd you cantankerous cabbage,” Magnus muttered. He turned to Alec.

Alec automatically opened his arms to receive him, distracted from Ragnor’s glower by Magnus’ distress. “Are you going to be okay?”

“I don’t know,” Magnus’ voice was muffled as he pressed his face into Alec’s neck. “A few months ago, I thought I’d killed him myself, so why…”

“Magnus,” Catarina called, brow furrowed as magic streamed from her fingertips. “I’m not… I don’t think this is going to work. I’m not used to healing Greater Demons, and the poison is interacting with him in ways that I have no idea how to counter. He’s not getting better. All I’m doing is slowing the rate at which he’s getting worse.”

Magnus took a deep breath before stepping out of the protection of Alec’s embrace. “We need to take him to Edom.”

Alec tried not to show his reaction to that statement. He knew it was irrational, but the idea of Magnus in Edom without him made his stomach knot up with stress. His head knew that it wasn’t like that other time, when Magnus going to Edom meant that he was leaving Alec, maybe forever, but his heart didn’t like the idea of being separated from his husband by a whole dimension.

“We should go back to your apartment,” Ragnor suggested. “Opening a portal to another realm out here in the open is just asking for trouble.”

“I’m coming with you,” Alec announced.

Magnus jerked his head around to stare at Alec. “What? No! Dearest, we don’t know if you’ll still have the immunity that Clary’s rune gave you!”

“The evidence points to us all still being affected,” Alec pointed out. “Simon and Meliorn both activated Izzy’s witchlight! And remember the time I fried a tablet when I got angry?” He drew closer, lifting a reassuring hand to his husband’s worried face. He dropped his voice slightly. “Edom is your domain now, remember? Yours and Izzy’s. If nothing else, I have complete trust that neither of you would ever hurt me, not if you could possibly help it. Let me come.”

Magnus smiled at him, a pained echo of his usual beaming joy. “You always take my breath away, Alexander. Very well. But if I see any hint that the realm is causing you discomfort, I’m sending you back immediately.”

Alec rested his forehead against Magnus’. “Agreed.”

Izzy’s bright voice broke the moment. “I’m coming too, of course.”

Magnus sighed and closed his eyes. “Generations of Lightwoods have done their best to shorten my life, you know. How ironic that it’s the generation that I love to distraction that is most likely to give me grey hairs.”

Alec remembered some of the fantasies he’d indulged during the first couple of days after Magnus had traded his magic to Asmodeus, back when all he could think about was that he and Magnus would get to grow old together. “You’d make an extremely fetching silver fox.”

“Bite your tongue!” Magnus sounded more like his usual self.

“Poetic justice,” Ragnor said acerbically. “You’ve been giving _me_ grey hairs since I met you. Are we going to get this show on the road any time soon, or are you waiting for someone to break out an orchestra so that you can commemorate the moment with a dance number?”

“I’m struggling to remember why I was so anxious to restore you,” Magnus informed him haughtily. “No doubt some variation of Stockholm syndrome.” He stepped away from Alec and opened a portal. “It’s infuriating when you’re right. Come then, we’ll head back to the loft and portal to Edom from there.”

Izzy looked concerned. “Will he be okay going through a portal? I thought unconscious people who went through portals ended up in limbo.”

“Magnus will encase Asmodeus in magic,” Ragnor explained as Magnus joined Catarina and began to wrap filaments of blue around his prone father. “So long as Magnus maintains physical contact with it—and him—at all times, traversing the portal should be safe enough. It’s a tricky feat to achieve, but well within his capabilities. It’s a loophole that only a few can exploit, and it’s knowledge that we Warlocks don’t usually reveal to Shadowhunters.”

“I imagine it’s a pretty steep learning curve,” Izzy remarked. “The first time someone tried it, the situation must have been pretty dire.”

Ragnor gave a short laugh. “The first time it happened the idiot who was doing it wasn’t fully aware of the limitations of portals,” he shared. “The invincibility of youth.”

Magnus used his magic to lift his now fully cocooned father, grasping an ankle with the hand that wasn’t directing the flows of power. “If you believed everything Ragnor told you, you’d come away with the impression that he was a staid old Warlock who never took any risks,” he commented. “Come along, Alexander, Isabelle. Ragnor, please tidy up here before joining us. We’ll be ready for an inter-realm journey in a few minutes.

v^v^v^v

Magnus had described the changes that Edom had gone through in the few short months since Alec’s last tumultuous visit but hearing about it and seeing it were very different matters. There was a background vibration that thrummed against his skin. It didn’t feel threatening at all, in fact, it was quite pleasant.

“It’s like a jungle,” Izzy said, looking around with wide eyes. “Only, not. The sky is _golden_.”

“Where did all these trees come from?” Alec asked, sizing up a ginormous bell-shaped specimen nearby. About two hundred feet to the left of it was a completely different type of tree that rose high into the sky. “I don’t remember Edom having any trees. One or two scrubby bushes, and some withered looking grass…no trees. And is that thrumming feeling normal?”

“It’s beautiful,” Izzy whispered.

When Alec looked over at her, he was slightly alarmed to notice that she’d started to shimmer gently. “Izzy!”

“What? Don’t you think it’s beautiful, Alec? I used to think that this is what heaven would look like.” The glow radiating from under her skin was intensifying as the seconds passed.

“Izzy, look at your skin!” Alec looked over to Magnus, only to discover that his husband was also glowing brightly.

“Don’t concern yourself, Alexander,” Magnus assured him. “Last time, the shine wore off after about an hour and did no harm.” He gave Alec a thorough once over. “You don’t _look_ as if you’re in imminent danger of burning up.”

“I feel fine,” Alec assured him. He took a moment to assess how he felt. Now that he was paying attention, he felt clearheaded and invigorated. The thrum from earlier was fading. “Wow, I feel better than fine, I feel great.”

“Good,” Magnus replied, his focus turning towards Asmodeus, who was laid out on a bed that Magnus had produced with a wave of his hands.

Alec took a closer look. Under the golden sky, Asmodeus’ colour looked a little better. Less sickly, more like his usual healthy tones. His breathing seemed more relaxed, too, and he’d stopped convulsing.

Izzy’s gasp drew his attention. She was staring at her hand, which was wreathed in dancing flames.

“Izzy!”

“Will you just relax, big brother? I’m fine,” Izzy assured him. “I was just surprised.”

“How can you be fine?” Alec demanded. “Your hand is on fire! Last time that was happening you were warned to stay away from anything demonic, or you would burn up!”

The fire sank back into her skin before flaring up again. “It’s not the same; this time I’m controlling it. Hey, watch this!” Izzy formed a ball of flame and then threw it into the air, where it hung for a few seconds before dispersing.

Alec felt some of the battle-ready tension fade from his body. “Izzy, my favourite sister… Do you think you could stop trying to give me a coronary? Cat’s dealing with something else, it wouldn’t be fair to ask her to stop just so that she can get my heart working again.”

“I couldn’t do this back home,” Izzy muttered to herself. “I wonder why?”

“It’s not terribly surprising that contact with the realm greatly facilitates your access,” Magnus said absently, his attention still on Asmodeus. “It’s why Greater Demons don’t leave their realms very often. Cat, what can you tell me?”

“I think he’s on the mend,” Catarina said, sounding tired. “At this point, I don’t think my help is necessary, or even particularly effective.” She looked up at Alec. “I’ll expect a sample of that poison as soon as you find out what it was. I need to run tests.”

Alec nodded seriously. “Of course. As soon as we get back, I’ll get in touch with Lorenzo. They’re going to have a hard time keeping their secrets under a truth spell.”

“I assure you, Alexander, that I am fully capable of providing any truth spells that you need,” Magnus objected, without looking up from his father.

“You’re too personally involved,” Alec reminded him gently. “If we use Lorenzo’s services, then we remove an avenue that could be used for objection later on.”

Magnus sniffed. He waved his hand, and a recliner appeared beside the bed that he sank into gracefully. “I’m sure that if you prefer the magical services of that second-rate hack, then it’s entirely your own affair.”

Izzy snorted. “I’m pretty sure that you’re the only Warlock Alec would like to service him,” she said slyly, forming another ball of flame and gently throwing it from one hand to the other. “The only person, period. Do you know that for years he’s been held up as some sort of dedicated, sexless, ideal warrior that all young Shadowhunters should aspire to emulate?”

“What?” Alec spun on his heel to glare at her. “I was not! I was constantly being told that I needed to do better!”

“Oh, they didn’t say those things where you could hear them,” Izzy said dismissively, eyes on her game. “But did you never wonder why there wasn’t more of an outcry when you got made Institute Head at such a young age? It was because, for years, various instructors had been using your lack of sex life as proof of your dedication to the Clave.”

Alec blinked. “Excuse me?”

“Think about it. You weren’t beating Jace’s scores on the field—no one was—but you were getting the nearest, and you didn’t have the wild streak that he did. So why do you think the marriage offers stopped once you reached twenty-one? It’s because everyone believed that you’d dedicated yourself to the Clave.”

“How did they know anything about my sex life?”

“Oh, Alec,” Izzy shook her head. It might have been Alec’s imagination, but the balls of flame she was playing with looked like they were shrinking. “You should know by now that Shadowhunters are all gossips of the highest order. We just like to be classy about it, so we only ever gossip if we can be sure the person or people we’re gossiping about won’t find out about it. After all, you know about Liam Lindquist, right?”

“You mean that he’s been sleeping his way through the Institutes in the southern hemisphere and we’re expecting him to arrive in the north within the next two years?”

“Right, and what about Nora Balogh?”

“She’s jilted three fiancées already and announced her fourth engagement a month ago.” Alec was starting to see what she meant. “But…what about when I kissed Magnus at my wedding to Lydia?”

Izzy laughed, letting her now noticeably smaller flames sink back into her hands. “Oh, by then the damage was done. If they tried to paint you as dangerously unstable and prone to fits of lunacy, they would have undermined their own rhetoric. The whole thing was hilarious.”

“Why didn’t you tell me about this?” Alec was feeling bewildered.

“I didn’t know about it either until after your wedding,” Izzy replied. “The first one, I mean. By then we had other things to worry about, and it’s only recently that we’ve had room to breathe again. It slipped my mind.”

“One day someone will tell me the full story about this wedding,” Ragnor remarked. “Magnus, old chap, I don’t suppose you could rustle up something to drink? I’m feeling a little parched.”

Magnus gave him a look, but also flicked his fingers. A small wooden table with a full tumbler on it appeared next to Ragnor.

“Where is all this stuff coming from?” Alec wondered. “I thought that when Warlocks conjured things, they just moved them from one location to another.”

“That’s the most efficient use of magic,” Ragnor said, taking a sip of his drink and grimacing slightly. “Provided the item you want isn’t on the other side of the world, that is. More advanced practitioners can just transmute items into their desired form. The fewer similarities between the thing being changed and the end result, the more magical power and finesse it takes. Magnus has enough power that he can transmute air molecules into whatever he chooses. Although, even after years of practice, he can’t make a decent cognac.”

“It’s the one kind of magic that can quickly deplete my reserves,” Magnus added. “At least, usually. Down here I haven’t noticed a drain. If I _wanted_ to, I could make the most exquisite cognac known to man. But why would I want to? I don’t _like_ cognac. Other ungrateful louts should either accept what they’re given or make their own.”

“Will I be able to make stuff out of nothing as well?” Izzy asked, looking excited.

Magnus winced slightly.

“That’s where the ‘finesse’ part comes in,” Ragnor informed her. “You’ll require a great deal of practice before you can do anything on that level. On the other hand, so long as you’re here,” he gestured to the green surroundings, “then you’ll no doubt have unlimited resources with which to work.” He took another sip. “Provided you don’t try anything on too large a scale.”

Alec frowned. “But if Magnus and Izzy are going to have near unlimited power, then why did Lilith need time to regenerate herself?”

Magnus sighed. “My father and Lilith shared this realm, but they were hardly friendly co-habitants. They were locked in a constant struggle, each trying to be the best, the strongest. In fact, I suppose you could say that we have my father to thank for Lilith’s reduced strength during the recent…unpleasantness. They were each both so determined to limit the other that they chained down the energy available, made it very difficult to access.”

“That was why he wanted _your_ magic,” Izzy realised. “He wanted magic that wasn’t tied to this realm, that way, he had more than her.”

Magnus nodded, expression pensive.

“But if having your magic was so crucial to maintaining supremacy here, then why did he risk giving it back?” Alec asked. “I know he had a plan to manipulate you into joining him down here, whereby he would have had access to your power without having to wield it personally, but why take the gamble?”

“I don’t know.”

“Maybe he wanted company,” Izzy suggested. “I imagine it would have gotten a little boring down here with only Lilith to talk to. She didn’t really come across as the conversable type.”

“If he ever gets his memories back, I’ll be sure to ask him,” Magnus promised. “Of course, that’s providing he doesn’t immediately try to reduce me to a particularly stylish smear on the landscape, of course.”

“You really think he’d do that?” Alec asked, thinking about the man they’d been sort-of living with for the last couple of months. “He _has_ known about the limbo thing for a while, and he hasn’t seemed terribly vengeful about it.”

Magnus shrugged. “We can’t base our expectations of what he’ll be like after regaining his memories on how he’s been lately. Our memories are what make us who we are. Without them…” He sighed. “The man we’ve been living with isn’t real. Reality is an ancient Greater Demon, one that has a reputation for holding grudges.”

“It might not turn out as badly as you fear,” Catarina said gently.

“Or it might be worse,” Ragnor put in.

Catarina turned on him. “You’re not helping, Ragnor. Although, neither am I really. Magnus, if you have no further need of me, I should back to what I was doing. If he starts going downhill again, I can always come back.”

“Of course,” Magnus said, getting to his feet. “Thank you so much for your help, my dear. I don’t know what I would do without you. Ragnor, will you be heading back too?”

“I imagine you’ll need someone to stay with your father while you’re ferrying people to and fro,” Ragnor replied, taking Magnus’ recently vacated seat. “Now, this is nice. Set me up with a new bottle and a copy of _Variations on Fire_ , and I’ll be happy enough here for the next little while. In fact, be a chap and bring my library trunk with you when you come back, would you? I’ve decided that this would be a nice place for a bit of a rest.”

“Don’t think I don’t know about the stash of brandy you keep in your trunk, you disreputable old lush,” Magnus said tartly, handing over a brandy bottle and a large, leather tooled book that he pulled out of nowhere. “Very well. Alexander, Isabelle, I assume you will be needing to get back to the Institute?”

“I suppose we should.” Alec felt a strange reluctance to leave this peaceful place. A glance at Izzy showed that she was feeling the same way. “Ragnor is right, it’s lovely here. We should come back when we’ve got a bit more time.” He blinked as a thought occurred to him. “I might see if I can wangle some time off. My father-in-law was brutally attacked, after all. There must be some sort of dispensation to cover that. I’m pretty sure the Clave won’t object since just today I’ve had four Councillors tell me they think I’m a bad influence. It’s not even lunchtime yet! I think that might be some kind of record.”

“That’s a great idea,” Izzy agreed. She tossed her hair back. “If I’m officially the Lady of Edom, then I should really start spending more time here, right? And have you seen the hours I’ve been putting in? No one will argue that I’m due some time off.

Alec nodded. “I know Underhill will be relieved.”

Izzy was looking more and more enthusiastic. “Maybe we can come back tonight. I want to start on my magic lessons, and Alec might need some too. Unless you _like_ blowing up tablets.”

Alec had forgotten about that. “That’s right. I can learn magic too!”

Magnus beamed at them. “I’ll work on a lesson plan right away. It will give me something to think about while I watch over my father.”

“Yes, yes,” Ragnor said. “Top-up my drink before you go, would you? Maybe provide some cheese and crackers, in case I get peckish.”

Magnus rolled his eyes but gave his fingers a familiar flick. “Gather round, my dears. Let’s get you back home.”

v^v^v^v

By the time Alec and Izzy returned to work, Lorenzo had been called and was waiting to question the prisoners. Alec handed the investigation over to Underhill—since he, Izzy, and Jace might be considered too close to the victims for impartiality—and started filling out the paperwork that came with arresting eight Shadowhunters all at once.

The interrogation didn’t take long. This particular group of dissidents were part of the same conspiracy as Penmount but were operating entirely separately. Whoever headed the group looked to have been working hard to keep the various cells isolated from each other. It was very annoying, but it made sense that whoever it was would have learned their lesson from the way Valentine ran things. For all his shadowy dealings, Valentine hadn’t been the subtlest of beings.

Dealing with the men and women who had attacked Asmodeus and Simon took up the rest of the day. By the end of it, Alec was sick of the whole thing. Bigots and assholes who thought the best way to make an argument was by killing people. He was glad that none of the eight captured were personally known to him, but it was still disheartening that the organisation he’d spent his life serving housed people like this, and in some cases, enabled them.

He was getting to work on a proposal for security upgrades that Underhill had given him that morning, having submitted his reports on the initial arrest, when Izzy came in, Jace and Simon following her like two slightly confused ducklings.

She threw herself into the chair in front of Alec, eyes bright. “I figured out what to do about Clary.”

Alec leaned back in his chair. “You have?”

“We can’t just leave her as she is,” Simon said. “Those nutters know about her, Alec. They know where she lives, where she studies. Sooner or later they’re going to make a try for her. What if they use that poison on her? Will she even last long enough for someone to get her help?”

Alec grimaced. Underhill had made sure to ask about the substance that the attackers had used on their arrows, but it turned out none of them knew what it was. They’d received orders, told where to pick up the poison and how to use it, but that was it. They’d also incinerated what was left over. All the analysts had to work with was what could be taken from the treated arrows that were unfired.

Alec had sent half the arrows off to Catarina, informing her that she should choose who was best to work on them, and given the remainder to Izzy. But lab work took time, and in the meantime, they were all vulnerable.

Especially Clary, who the attackers admitted was a target, along with the senior members of the New York Institute and various other prominent names, including Jia Penhallow and other Council members. At least that meant that the Clave wouldn’t be trying to pretend that this was all a misunderstanding. They were extremely adept at looking out for themselves, of course.

“What’s your plan?” Alec asked.

“Making sure that she’s safe is our main priority,” Izzy said. “Where else would she be safer than in Edom?”

“Okay,” Alec said slowly. “But Clary doesn’t remember anything about the Shadow World. How are you going to convince her to let you take her somewhere she doesn’t even believe exists? We can’t just kidnap her.”

“Well, duh.” Izzy made a ‘ta-da’ gesture at Jace, who was lurking grumpily behind her with his hands in his pockets. “We send Jace.”

“But she doesn’t remember Jace.”

“No, but they have that connection, remember? They trusted each other with barely any introduction last time; we should use that connection to get her to agree to come with us. Once we’re in Edom, we’ll have all the time in the world to explain everything to her.”

Simon leaned forward. “Even if she doesn’t get her memories back, she’ll be _safe_.”

Alec thought about it. It was a crazy idea, but upon reflection, it had a high chance of success. Possibly one of the most astonishing things about it was that they came to him before just running off to do what they thought was best. He took a careful look at Jace. His parabatai was being uncharacteristically quiet about all of this. “Have you asked for Luke’s opinion?”

Izzy looked a little sheepish. “Not yet.”

“He really doesn’t have a say,” Simon put in. “She’s eighteen, she doesn’t need a legal guardian’s permission to go wherever—or do whatever—she wants.”

Alec glared at him. “Luke has just as much interest in Clary’s welfare as you do. I’m sure he’d be concerned to hear that she’s in danger and pleased that you’ve come up with a solution. So, go tell him. The only reason he would object is if he thinks of possible issues, in which case these are also things that you need to consider. Come back to me when you’ve had a proper discussion with him.”

“But Clary could be attacked at any moment!” Simon wailed.

Alec raised an unimpressed eyebrow. “Then I suggest you get on with it.” He softened his demeanour slightly. “If you can get Luke’s agreement, then I’ll add my voice to yours when you present the idea to Magnus.”

Jace’s gaze skipped around the room, landing everywhere but on Alec. “We thought _you_ could talk to Magnus about it.”

Alec crossed his arms. “This is _your_ plan; you do the hard lifting. Besides, this is right up Magnus’ alley. I can’t see him disagreeing, not if you’ve got everyone’s approval.”

Jace gave an aggrieved sigh. “Fine. Come on, you two.”

Izzy shook her head, getting to her feet. “You and Simon can go. I’ve got a pile of work I need to get done. Thanks, big brother. I’ll see you later.” She left in high spirits, fairly bursting with energy.

Simon gave a confused blink. “What’s gotten into her? Is she on drugs or something? This morning she was acting normally, but now…”

“Izzy’s fine,” Alec said brusquely. “Now, if I could have my office back?”

“We’ll return as soon as we’ve talked to Luke.” Jace held the door open for Simon, who still looked preoccupied.

“Or just send a message,” Alec suggested, pulling up the document he’d been working on. “We’d need to wait for Magnus to get back from Edom before we can proceed in any case.” Putting their short visit out of his mind, he got back to work. If he wanted to feel comfortable taking the next few days off, several tasks needed to be completed.


	8. Chapter 8

## Chapter eight

Having cleared his desk of everything that needed to be taken care of, Alec was able to leave the Institute with a clear conscience. He left Underhill in charge with Alatini as back-up and arrived at the loft only a little after his usual home time, planning to take the next couple of days off. His husband’s father had been attacked and grievously wounded, after all, he was owed some compassionate leave.

Jace and Simon arrived only fifteen minutes or so after Alec, and they already had Clary in tow.

Jace waved vaguely in Alec’s direction. “This is my brother, Alec.”

“Hi,” Alec said awkwardly, shaking the hand she extended. He raised an eyebrow at Simon. “I take it Luke gave you the okay?”

Simon shrugged. “Well, Luke’s objections were mainly focused on the upheaval to her schooling. But then Jace pointed out that being attacked and poisoned would likely have a pretty huge effect on her life, and so, in the end, Luke agreed.”

Clary looked around with big eyes. “Wow, this place is amazing! I’ve had dreams about a place like this! I bet it’s lovely in the Autumn, with the golden sunlight. Oh, hi, Alec, I’m Clary. Wow, you two are brothers? You look nothing alike!”

Jace frowned. “Alec’s parents adopted me.”

Clary looked horrified. “Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to step on any sensitive spots. Is that why you got the tattoos? They don’t quite match, but they’re clearly in the same style.”

Jace looked as baffled as Alec felt. “That’s okay. It’s not like it was a secret or anything. And these markings are…a cultural thing, I guess you could say.”

“Oh. Well, I thought…never mind.” Clary smiled her pretend smile, the one she’d used when dealing with Clave officials that she didn’t like.

“Have you already talked to Magnus?” Alec asked, getting tired of the awkward silence. “I’m a bit surprised he didn’t let me know that he’d arrived back.”

“Magnus is Alec’s husband,” Simon informed Clary. “They live here.”

Clary grabbed hold of the conversational opening. “How lovely! How long have you been married?”

Alec cocked his head to one side, considering. “It’ll be three months in about a week.”

“So, you’re newlyweds!” Clary’s smile this time was genuine. “How’s that working out for you?”

Alec’s smile was probably covering his whole face. “I’m happier than I’ve been in my entire life.”

“Alexander, my love!” Magnus said from the doorway. Alec hadn’t heard the portal, so the wards must have warned him that someone without the sight was present. “The feeling is mutual, I assure you.”

Alec met Magnus a few steps from the door, leaning down to kiss him hello. “How is your father?”

“His vital signs have improved greatly, although he has yet to awaken. It looks as though it’s a waiting game for the moment.”

Alec studied his husband’s face, noticing the slightly pronounced stress lines around his eyes. “I don’t know what use I’ll be, but I’ve arranged my schedule so I don’t have to be back at the Institute until Monday.”

Magnus smiled and leaned in to touch their foreheads together. “Your very presence will be a delight, mon chéri.”

Alec couldn’t have held back his sappy smile if he’d tried. Which he didn’t. If they’d been alone then that would have been a perfect segue into more intimate activities, but they had an apartment full of people, so it would have to wait.

He lifted his head. “Jace and Simon brought Clary here.”

“Yes,” Magnus sounded amused. “I noticed, sayang.” That deserved another kiss, one Alec was only too willing to administer.

“Do you have to do that where other people can see you?” Jace broke the moment with his usual grace and tact. “Clary Fray, this is Magnus Bane.”

Magnus released the hold he’d taken on Alec’s shirt. He carefully smoothed the slightly rucked-up fabric down, before turning to smile at Clary. “Nice to see you again, my dear.”

“Hi,” Clary said, looking a little nervous. “Jace said that you had something you needed to tell me?”

“Oh, he did, did he?” Magnus’ genial smile turned into a frown for Alec’s parabatai. “How nice of Jace to entrust such a sensitive topic to me. No doubt it’s for the best, but a bit of warning might have been nice.”

Jace rolled his eyes. “Well, you’ve been…out of town all day. It’s not like I could just call you on the phone.”

Magnus ignored him. “The truth is, Biscuit—”

Clary mouthed ‘biscuit’, but Jace shook his head at her.

“—there have been some strange goings-on that concern you. We need to tell you about them, but before that, we need to establish a bit of background.”

“Wait,” Jace said suddenly. “Is it safe to talk about that stuff here? Won’t the…you know…be watching?”

Magnus sniffed. “I assure you that my protections are good enough to foil both the best of my father’s people _and_ his political rivals. They wouldn’t be kept out for long, but it would be long enough for us to be alerted and to find somewhere more comfortable to be.”

“What are you talking about?” Clary’s voice had sharpened. She was beginning to sound more like herself.

“There are some…people…that would no doubt object to me sharing this information with you.” Magnus patted her hand soothingly. “Jace was merely expressing his concern that they may have bugged my apartment, and could, therefore, be on their way here to stop me from telling you what I think you should know.”

“You’re being very cloak and dagger about this,” Clary said suspiciously. “Are we talking about organised crime? Because if we are, I want nothing to do with it.”

“Yes and no. Just listen to me for a while.”

Rather than waste his time listening to Clary get the ‘so you’re a member of a secret sect of demon-hunters’ speech, Alec decided to pack a bag for his anticipated stay in Edom. Magnus would only be too happy to conjure whatever he asked for, of course, but Alec enjoyed the comfort and familiarity of his own things.

When that was done, he pulled out his phone and made sure his mother and his little brother wouldn’t be concerned if they tried to reach him in his absence, before calling Izzy to let her know that the plan was in motion and that as soon as Clary agreed, they would be heading back to Edom.

“Can you delay them for another half an hour?” Izzy asked distractedly. Alec could hear typing in the background. “I just need to get these notes written up and then I can take the next two days off. It’s going to take at least that long before the lab-work comes back.”

“I’m pretty sure that they’ll be talking for longer than half an hour,” Alec assured her.

Izzy’s typing faltered. “Do you think we should invite Meliorn and Lorenzo? Since the rest of us will be there?”

Alec sat on the edge of the bed. “I can’t see any reason why they shouldn’t come. But would they want to?”

“You don’t think they’ll want to see what’s been happening down there since we destroyed Lilith?”

“Since _you_ destroyed Lilith,” Alec pointed out, feeling the familiar swell of pride. His little sister had singlehandedly killed a Greater Demon, in her own realm!

“Just give them a call, big brother,” Izzy instructed him, her typing picking up speed again. “If they don’t want to come then fine, that’s on them. At least we’ll have given them the opportunity.”

“As you command, oh slayer of demons,” Alec said. “See you soon.”

To his surprise, both Meliorn and Lorenzo were keen on the idea of joining them.

“Bane might have given me a bit more warning,” Lorenzo said huffily. “I’ll need to make arrangements for one of my people to stand in for me in my absence. We can’t all go galivanting around the realms at a moment’s notice, you know. Some of us have responsibilities to attend to.”

“Magnus can’t hear you,” Alec pointed out. “He’s in the other room giving Clary Fray the truncated version of Shadow World: A History, in the hope that she’ll agree to come with us.”

Lorenzo made a disgruntled noise. “Drat. I suppose I’ll have to find some other way to work it into the conversation. I’ll be there as soon as I get my people organised.”

Meliorn just asked when and where to meet them, thanked Alec for inviting him, and hung up.

By the time Alec made it back out into the lounge, Magnus had the photo albums out, and was talking about the Circle, Valentine, and the Mortal Instruments. Clary was listening with shock, hands wrapped around something fruity-looking with an umbrella poking out the top. She periodically glanced over to where Jace and Simon were hanging out by the windows playing a spirited game of Hot Hands, with Simon using his vamp-speed and Jace using his runes.

Alec peered over Magnus’ shoulder. There was a photo there of Jocelyn, Clary, Jace, Izzy, Simon, and Luke. Alec was clearly visible in the background, and Magnus must have been the photographer. Sure enough, just over the page was the same group of people, only with Magnus slightly in front of them and clearly taking a selfie.

“I don’t remember any of this!” Clary exclaimed. “My mom died in a car accident, and I don’t remember ever meeting any of you people before.”

“Yes, well, it appears that the angels were quite thorough,” Magnus said sympathetically.

“But why would they _do_ that?” She said, sounding more and more agitated. “What benefit does it gain anyone if I don’t remember all…this…”

“We think it had something to do with your special gifts,” Jace said, abandoning his game and coming back to take a seat opposite her. “The thing was, they only wanted you to use those gifts in the way that they approved of. But you were more interested in saving lives than playing by the rules, and when you did something that they had expressly told you not to do, well…”

“And you all just _left_ me like this?” Now she was starting to get angry. That was a side of Clary that Alec was a lot more familiar with.

“We had no way to restore your memories ourselves,” Simon told her earnestly. “We were worried that if we started just randomly experimenting, then the angels would notice, and things would get worse.”

“Worse?” Clary shrieked. “How could they possibly be worse? Since my mom died, I’ve been alone, Simon! No close friends, no family, just me! And now you tell me that I have this group of people who you _say_ love me like family; if you really love me like family then where were you? Where were you when she was buried? I stood at her graveside alone!”

Jace gave a pained grimace. “I’m pretty sure that’s a fabricated memory, Clary. We were all at your mother’s funeral.”

“Oh, you were? Prove it!”

Jace was looking fidgety. “We didn’t take any photos. It’s not the sort of thing—”

“But there would have been an order of service, or something, right?”

“It…wasn’t really like that.” Jace looked at Alec for help.

“We’re not making any progress here,” Alec interrupted them, not really wanting to get into all the details surrounding Jocelyn’s death if he didn’t have to. “The whole point of this is to get Clary’s memories back. We should just go to Edom and see what we can do. It will save a whole lot of explaining.”

“My Alexander has rather gone right to the centre of the matter, as usual,” Magnus said after a brief pause. “If you can believe that there are things beyond your current understanding, and you put any credence in our claims to know and care for you…”

“Come with us, Fray,” Simon pleaded. “I want my best friend back.”

“We’ll need to wait until Meliorn and Lorenzo get here, and Izzy’s on her way too.”

Simon frowned. “Why do we need to wait for them? Why are they coming?”

Magnus blinked, before sending a brilliant smile Alec’s way. “What a wonderful idea, darling! By combining our energies, the eight of us managed to tame an entire realm. Compared to that, a little memory restoration should be a piece of cake!” He turned to Clary, his expression softening. “But only if you wish to try it, my dear. I promise you that no one here is going to force you into anything.” He sent a quelling frown Simon’s way. “No matter how much Shuster wants ‘his best friend back.’”

“I thought his name was Simon.”

Magnus waved his hand. “Whatever. Get the door, would you, Alexander? I believe the charming Isabelle has arrived.”

Alec opened the door to the corridor just as Izzy approached. He raised his eyebrows at her black leather jeans, bright red tube top, and the black leather jacket that she’d taken to wearing recently. Her black and white boots gave her at least three extra inches. “You decided to get changed?”

“I’m the Lady of Edom, big brother, and I intend to look the part.” She breezed past him. “Magnus and I are going to be the best-dressed realm rulers the dimensions have ever seen, and leather never goes out of style.”

“Isabelle, dearest!” Magnus rose to his feet and came forward to kiss her cheeks. “You, of course, are already familiar with our guest. Clary, this lovely woman is Isabelle Lightwood, Alexander’s sister.”

“It’s good to see you, Clary,” Isabelle said warmly. “How are you feeling? A bit overwhelmed, I imagine?”

Clary’s eyes almost popped out of her head when she saw Izzy, but when she recovered her poise, she seemed somewhat relieved to have another woman to talk to. Alec suddenly wondered if she’d felt uncomfortable, given that she’d been brought to a place alone with a group of strange men. It hadn’t occurred to him before because the Clary he knew wouldn’t have minded. But this wasn’t the Clary he knew, not yet anyway. The sooner they got her memories back, the better.

v^v^v^v

Edom was just as beautiful as it had been that morning. The welcoming thrum that vibrated up from his boots was felt a little wilder. Perhaps because Alec had been expecting it, it was much more noticeable.

Jace, Simon, and Meliorn all looked around with great interest.

“Wow,” Jace said. “Are you sure you brought us to the right place, Magnus? We were supposed to be going to Edom. E…Dom. This looks more like something out of a fantasy story.”

“It’s certainly had a makeover,” Simon agreed.

“It is _magnificent_ ,” Meliorn breathed. “Such vibrant life…I have never been anywhere that felt like this.”

Clary wasn’t yet recovered from the portal and looked more shocked than interested. Lorenzo graced his surroundings with a critical stare that reminded Alec suddenly of Ragnor.

Which begged the question... “Where are Asmodeus and Ragnor?”

“They’re in the house I made, of course.” Magnus affected an innocent air that didn’t fool Alec in the slightest.

“Magnus…”

Magnus pouted. “It’s no fun if you don’t want to play with me. Fine. I left a glamour on it in case something big and nasty wanted to break in during my absence. There you go.” He flicked his fingers.

A group of trees off to one side shimmered and disappeared, revealing a house that hadn’t been there that morning.

“It’s beautiful,” Alec said admiringly. Magnus had recreated one of the many places they’d visited together, a delightful eco-friendly hotel constructed primarily of bamboo located in the uplands of Bali. They’d stopped in for a meal on their way through and agreed that they’d like to come back one day for a proper stay. It had surprised Alec a little at the time. Magnus made such a production about enjoying the luxuries of life—and that particular hotel had a decidedly rustic air to it—but it ended up being just another facet of the man he loved so much.

Jace looked at it critically. “It is? It looks like one step above a derelict hut.”

“Ignore him,” Izzy said, eyeing the structure in front of her. “I like it. It fits in with the surroundings.”

“She’s right,” Clary agreed, tilting her head to one side. “I wish I had my pencils with me. I’d love to draw it.”

Magnus directed a smug smile in Jace’s direction. “I can always trust you to have exquisite taste, Isabelle. Here,” he pulled an ornate wooden box out of the air with one hand, and a sketchbook with the other. “Draw to your heart's content, my dear.”

“We _do_ actually have a purpose here,” Lorenzo reminded them.

“Have I reached the afterlife?” Meliorn muttered, standing with his hand pressed against the tree with the bell-shaped canopy that had drawn Alec’s attention when he’d first arrived. “This can surely not be the desolate wasteland we travelled to previously.”

Jace looked at the tree with calculating eyes. “Look at the way those branches are spaced out. _That_ is a tree that’s just asking to be climbed.”

Simon came over to stand beside him. “I see what you mean.” He peered upwards. “I wonder how high up you can get? Those branches look pretty sturdy.”

Jace was wearing his mischievous grin. “Only one way to find out. Hey, Lewis. I bet that I can get higher than you, faster than you.”

“Oh, you are _on_ , Herondale!” Simon was grinning now too.

Clary sidled up to Jace, clutching her wooden box and art paper. “Did you know that your sister is glowing? Is that something that Shadowhunters do?”

Jace glanced over at Izzy for a moment. “I wouldn’t say it’s normal, exactly, but then down here nothing’s really _normal_. If Izzy, Alec, and Magnus aren’t bothered, it’s probably nothing to worry about.”

Izzy tossed her hair. “Thank you, Jace, your concern for my welfare is underwhelming.” Even that was glowing.

Jace rolled his eyes. “You know as well as I do that Alec wouldn’t just be standing there if your firefly imitation was anything to stress about.”

Izzy laughed. “True,” she admitted. “Alec got his freak-out over and done with this morning.”

“Did you recreate the interior too?” Alec asked Magnus, trying to ignore the group over by the tree.

“I took a few liberties.” Magnus took Alec by the hands and pulled him towards the door. “I think you’ll like what I did with the master bedroom.”

Lorenzo cleared his throat ostentatiously. “Excuse me! We have a task to perform! Might we perhaps take care of that before we all get hopelessly distracted? Some of us have already had a long, tiring day, interrogating criminals!”

Magnus openly scoffed at him. “Oh, come on, Lorenzo, I’ve already been informed that Alec left that up to Underhill. Or should I say, _Andrew_.” Nevertheless, he released one of Alec’s hands and stopped dragging him inside.

Lorenzo lifted his chin and stared at Magnus, the effect only slightly ruined by the reddening of his ears. “Say what you want to say, _Bane_.”

“I’m just saying that you might not want to continue down this track. If you feel you must, then, by all means, don’t let me try to stop you. I assure you that I would _never_ abuse my close relationship with the Head of the Institute to get hold of the security footage.”

Alec shook his head, a smile twitching his lips. “Come on, Magnus, he does have a point. The sooner we get Clary’s memories sorted out, the sooner we can finish up here and…” He trailed off, not comfortable spelling out his intentions in front of so many people.

“Inspect the master bedroom,” Magnus finished for him. “Alexander, as always you make a compelling argument. Very well, let’s get on with this.” He dropped Alec’s other hand and strode forward, blue mist gathering at his fingertips.

Clary stepped forward to meet him, head held high.

Simon raised his hand. “Um, is this going to hurt her?”

Magnus laid his hands, now entirely wreathed with blue, either side of Clary’s head. “It’s a little late to be asking that question, Scott. But no. This is just a diagnostic. I ran one just after your memories were taken, and now I want to make sure nothing has changed since then. We need as much information as possible before we make any attempt at resolution.”

Clary relaxed. Magnus closed his eyes and frowned slightly as his magic formed into filaments of azure, weaving themselves into a loose mesh that completely encased her skull before sinking inwards, disappearing from view. Moments later, Clary’s eyes glowed brightly, the white glow of the Angels.

Magnus dropped his hands and stepped back.

“Clary, are you alright?” Simon reached out to touch her, stopping just short of her face. He turned to Magnus. “Why did her eyes go all freaky? I thought the Angels couldn’t reach her here!”

“They can’t,” Magnus assured him. “That wasn’t a direct response. It was a trigger, reacting to the touch of my magic.” He took a deep breath and spoke directly to Clary. “So, the non-technical explanation is that your memories and abilities have been encased in a sort of…malleable film of power. It’s really quite beautifully done; it allows your mind to develop and grow while limiting access to the things they want to keep hidden from you.”

“So how do we fix it?”

“Normally, I would say that it can’t _be_ fixed.” Magnus raised one hand, cutting off the objections that Jace, Simon, and Clary all started to make. “ _Normally_ , I said. These are not normal circumstances, are they? You see, there are theoretically several ways to affect someone’s memories—”

Lorenzo rolled his eyes. “Please cease with all the dramatics, Bane. We don’t want a lecture on the history of mind-manipulation, we want to get this over and done with so that we can go _home_.”

Magnus gave an exaggerated sniff. “Fine. Briefly, then, meddling with the mind is always an extremely delicate process; quite aside from the moral aspect, it’s incredibly easy for things to go wrong. When you start talking about adjusting the work that someone else has performed, the likelihood of failure increases exponentially. Each additional factor; my unfamiliarity with the being doing the work, that they belong to an entirely different species; adds more risk.

“Therefore, it is only in the direst of circumstances that I would even consider poking my metaphorical fingers into the mix. So, when the idea of bringing you here was first brought up, my agreement was more about getting you to safety than because I had any great expectation that I would be able to resolve your problem.”

“You had me brought here on false pretences?” Clary folded her arms, all her weight on her back foot.

Magnus raised his eyebrows. “You don’t think that you should listen to the full explanation before jumping to conclusions? Besides, I didn’t ‘have you brought’ anywhere, my dear. I was presented with your presence and told to ‘explain things’. I never promised that your memories would be returned, only that I would try. Any ‘false pretences’ outside of that were either made entirely on your own, or by Jace and Sawyer. I suggest that you take it up with them.”

Clary shifted her attention to Jace and Simon, who were standing side by side. “Well?”

Jace shrugged unrepentantly. “The most important thing was making sure you’re safe. I’m not sorry.”

Simon toed the ground like a chastised child. “If we’d turned up on your doorstep saying, ‘Hey, Clary, you have no memory of us, but we’re secretly your friends from another life! We think you might be in danger from invisible assassins; come with us to another realm where we can keep you safe! By the way, your memories may never return!’ would you have listened, or would you have dismissed us as nut-jobs? It was hard enough getting you to come and see Magnus.”

Clary’s postured softened. “I suppose you have a point. But I still don’t like it.”

Magnus nodded understandingly. “Another reason that anyone sensible would avoid tampering with the Angels’ handiwork is that doing so will probably draw their attention, and possibly retribution. Making sure that we’re somewhere they can’t reach us before beginning is only logical. With that in mind, I had formulated a vague strategy whereby we would perform a sort of magical purification in the hope that the film of Angelic power would be dissolved, or even just dislodged.”

Lorenzo curled his lip in a sneer. “Why am I not surprised to discover that you were flying by the seat of your pants.”

Magnus ignored the interruption. “However, Alexander suggested that all of those who were party to the events of last November should be present. That’s when I had my brainwave. The eight of us together were able to withstand and absorb the pressure of an _entire demonic realm_. If we were to join forces then surely one spell, no matter how intricately wrought, would be a piece of cake.”

Alec cleared his throat. “It was Izzy who suggested that Lorenzo and Meliorn should be here.”

Magnus gave Izzy a penetrating stare.

“What?” Izzy shrugged. “It just made sense.”

“Your connection with the realm bears investigation,” Magnus said thoughtfully. “As does mine, of course. But that’s a focus for another time. To cut a long explanation short, I believe that if we join hands together, as we once did to save Isabelle, then Isabelle should be able to use her heavenly fire to purge Biscuit of any spells that are on her.”

Simon tilted his head to one side. “You mean like a system restore.”

“Close enough.”

Clary’s hands were on her hips. “You think that joining hands is going to magically give me my memories back? Are we going to sing kumbaya as well? Have you people cracked?”

Izzy shrugged and smiled at her reassuringly. “I don’t know that song, so no. You wouldn’t want to hear Alec singing in any case. Why don’t we just give it a try? If Magnus is wrong, what harm will it do?”

“Excellent!” Lorenzo clapped his hands together briskly. “Come on then. We should probably repeat the same formation that we used in November, yes? Which means that I have Meliorn to my right, and Mr Lightwood-Bane to my left. Mr _Alec_ Lightwood-Bane, that is.”

“Wow you really want to get out of here,” Jace said as they formed a circle and joined hands. “You have a hot date you’re missing out on or something?”

“Some of us are less impressed by grandstanding and more by competence and efficiency, Mr Herondale,” Lorenzo said, conviction exuding from every pore.

Alec might even have believed him if he hadn’t been to one of his parties. This was probably about Underhill again. Still, bringing that up would only drag this thing out, and besides, Alec preferred not to gossip unless it was relevant. In which case, it was less gossip and more the sharing of possibly vital information. At least, that’s what Magnus had told him.

Clary frowned. “I’m not noticing anything different.”

“Isabelle?” Magnus prompted.

“How exactly am I supposed to go about this?” Isabelle asked. Only her too-tight grip on his hand gave Alec any indication that she was nervous.

Magnus smiled reassuringly at her. “You know you can call the fire to your hands; I saw you wielding it this morning. Concentrate on its cleansing aspect and summon it the same way. If that doesn’t work, then we can look at other methods.”

“Fine, just give me a moment.” Izzy took a deep breath and closed her eyes. The rest of them waited, watching her.

Several moments later, Alec felt a warm tingle in the hand that she was holding.

“I can feel that!” Clary sounded astonished. “It’s like…I don’t know what it’s like. But it feels good.”

The warm tingling spread swiftly throughout Alec’s whole body. When it reached his right hand, he felt Lorenzo’s connecting hand twitch.

“It is…much gentler than it was last time around,” Lorenzo murmured.

“Understatement,” Simon agreed a moment later. “Is anything happening yet?”

“We might need to give it a little while,” Magnus cautioned. “It does not do to be hasty when magic is involved. That’s how mistakes are made. Careful, considered, caution. Those are a Warlock’s watchwords.”

A snort of derision heralded Ragnor’s arrival on the scene. He didn’t approach or say anything, just watched from his spot leaning in the doorway of the house that Magnus had built.

Alec was starting to relax into the feeling when Clary gasped loudly. Her eyes flew open, once again glowing that white glow. As Alec watched, the white gradually deepened into the gold that he’d seen in the rest of them. Eventually, the gold died away.

“Those utter _bastards_ ,” Clary said, releasing the hands she was holding. Alec dropped Lorenzo’s hand but kept holding Izzy’s. Izzy made no attempt to let go either. “I was prepared to lose my runes. I was prepared to lose my special abilities and even my place at the Institute. How dare they take my memories? How dare they take my _family_?”

“Clary?” Simon asked, hopefully.

“Yeah, Simon. It’s me.” Her furious expression gave way to a tremulous smile. “Same Fray, new day. Only I’m really a Fairchild, so does that even work anymore?”

“Clary!” Simon scooped her into his arms and swung her around ecstatically. “You’re back!”

Izzy dropped Alec’s hand and joined in the hug, with Jace following soon after.

Lorenzo and Meliorn stood slightly apart, both smiling.

Alec moved to Magnus’ side, wrapping an arm around his waist and watching the reunion fondly. It was good to have Clary back. He had no doubt she would embroil them in some new drama almost immediately, but still, getting her memories back was the right thing to do.

Eventually, Jace, Izzy, Clary, and Simon disentangled themselves.

Something about what she’d said pinged in Alec’s brain, and he frowned. “Wait, you didn’t know the Angels were going to take away your memories? But what about the letters you wrote?”

Clary blinked. “What letters? I didn’t write any letters!”

Simon reached inside his jacket and pulled out a slightly battered looking envelope. “Here, read the one I got.”

Clary read through the single sheet of paper with raised eyebrows. When she got to the end, she turned it over and checked out the back, before reading through it again a little more slowly. “I can see why you thought this was from me. It’s my writing, and this is totally some of the things that I was thinking. If I _was_ going to write letters, this is I would have said. But I didn’t write this.”

Jace shook his head. “If you didn’t know you were going to lose your memories, what was all that goodbye stuff you were doing at Alec’s wedding?”

“I thought I was going to stop being a Shadowhunter, Jace! I already know the rules, no Mundanes in the Institute, remember? To tell you the truth, I was already pretty sure that I didn’t want to hang around the Institute and have what I’d lost waved in my face all the time!” Her eyes filled with tears, and she sniffed. “I’d spent part of the afternoon organising what was left of my mother’s estate, making sure I had a place to live. I had my acceptance into the Academy, so at least I would still be able to do something I loved.”

Alec didn’t think he’d ever seen Jace look at Clary with such a cold, assessing look on his face. “You were going to run away. I was baring my heart and soul to you, and you just planned to leave.”

“Hey!” Simon interjected. “Stop giving her a hard time! We just got her back, can’t you take even five minutes to be happy?”

“Of course I’m happy that she remembers us now!” Jace snapped. “That doesn’t mean that we have to all of a sudden forget that this whole memory-loss thing was something that she deliberately brought on herself!”

Clary’s tears had given way to fury. “I already told you, I didn’t know that I was going to lose my memory!”

Jace folded his arms. “Would that have stopped you?”

“I had to stop Jonathon, Jace! He was my brother; it was my responsibility! People were dying!”

Jace stepped right into her personal space. “The Angels gave you an ultimatum, but you had options. We were all right there, we might have figured out a way to stop Jonathon that didn’t result in you losing your powers. But we’ll never know now because you didn’t trust us.” He took a step back. “Like always, you just did what you wanted.”

“You think I _wanted_ this?”

This wasn’t getting them anywhere. Simon was right about one thing; this was supposed to be a happy moment. There would be plenty of time later to chew Clary out about her habit of running off with no regard to anything but what she personally wanted or thought was right.

“Hey, time out! Jace, this isn’t the time.” Alec matched glares with his parabatai until Jace reluctantly lowered his gaze. “It’s good to have you back, Clary, it’s been almost boring without you. I’m even all up-to-date with the paperwork.”

“It’s good to see you too.” Clary came over and hugged them, before moving onto Lorenzo. She’d just finished hugging a slightly bemused Meliorn when she caught sight of Ragnor watching from the doorway. “Wait, I know you. Ragnor? Ragnor Fell? But you’re dead.”

“Am I?” Ragnor responded. “How very dull that sounds. No wonder it didn’t take.” He glanced briefly over his shoulder at something behind him. “Magnus, old boy, if you’re not too busy I think there’s something back here you might wish to a have a look at.”

“Can’t it wait?” Magnus asked, beaming all over his face. “We’re in the middle of a reunion here, if you hadn’t noticed.”

“Suit yourself,” Ragnor shrugged. “I thought you might like to know that your father is close to waking.”

Magnus blinked. “Yes, I suppose that is rather pressing. Forgive me, Biscuit, I’ll speak with you when this is taken care of.” Alec turned to accompany him. “Don’t be absurd, Alexander. I’m sure that I’ll be able to manage without you. Stay and enjoy the reunion.”

Alec fondly shook his head. “You’re my husband, Magnus. Let me support you when you need it.” He smiled a little. “Face it, you’re probably not going to _need_ me all that often, are you?”

Magnus took Alec’s face in his hands and stared him in the eye. “I always need you, Alexander. Please don’t doubt that.” He kissed Alec softly, before releasing his face and stepping back. “But I take your meaning. Come on then, let’s see how the irascible old fellow is doing.”

Clary’s voice came clearly through the door. “What, Magnus’ father? _Asmodeus?_ Wasn’t he dead? Or out of the picture for good?”

“Remind me to arrange some soundproofing,” Magnus murmured.

The interior of the small house was distinctly more substantial than the exterior suggested. Alec recognised Magnus had drawn the overall style from the same resort, all bamboo and glass, but it was from the more sophisticated dining areas rather than the simpler, rustic cottages.

Magnus led Alec into a room at the back, where Asmodeus was lying on a raised futon. He wasn’t awake yet, but his eyes were moving quickly behind his eyelids. His arms and legs were almost spasming, jerking in a way that was creating chaos out of the blankets.

“Whatever’s going on in there doesn’t look pleasant,” Ragnor observed. “I’m not sure if that’s a good sign or a bad sign.”

Alec glanced at him. “How do you mean?”

“Last week, Asmodeus and I discussed his dreams,” Magnus, said, twisting the ring on his left index finger. “He told me that, as far as he knew, he didn’t have dreams. That sometimes he awoke with a feeling of dread, but nothing else to speak of. Either he was lying to me, or something’s changed.”

“Maybe he just didn’t remember?” Alec suggested. “Could whatever it was that wiped his memories in the first place be suppressing them?”

Magnus shook his head. “We would have seen other signs. The mind is immensely complicated, and the sort of spell-work required to repress his dreams but leave his current memory unaltered would have required constant tweaking. There are no signs of spell-work on any of the Travellers, let alone something of that magnitude.”

Alec sighed. “You think that he’s reacting like this because his memories are returning, then?”

“They could be,” Ragnor shrugged. “All we know for sure is that something disturbs his rest. Are the dreams unpleasant because he’s remembering a history he dislikes? Or is it the near past he is reacting to? Is this a side effect of the poison, or is something else about this realm affecting him? Many questions, not much data to form conclusions from.”

Alec nodded. The last few months had shown him a side of his father-in-law that he’d found himself enjoying. Asmodeus was less buoyant and naturally jubilant than Magnus; he had a similar keen intellect and dark humour but had seemed no more inherently cruel than many people Alec had met. He hoped that, whatever happened, the sardonic man that he’d come to know wouldn’t be subsumed by his memories.

No doubt it would be worse for Magnus. Magnus, with the heart so big it had room for everyone, even the stray cats that live in the street. Magnus, who never really stopped loving people once he’d started, who’d been hurt time and time again because once he gave someone the power to hurt him, they had that power forever. Magnus, whose heart had never healed from the tears his father had ripped in it over the centuries.

Magnus, who was visibly squaring his shoulders and wiping all signs of concern and apprehension from his expression. Magic swirled around him for a moment before sinking back into his skin. He’d stopped looking like the Magnus that Alec loved. It was almost alarming.

Ragnor wordlessly squeezed Magnus’ left shoulder as Alec nudged his right.

“Hey,” Alec said softly. “We’ve got this.”

Magnus turned disbelieving eyes on him. “We’ve got this?”

Alec smiled a little at the memory of the last time he’d had a conversation like this. “It’s no problem. We’re Lightwood-Banes.”

Magnus let out a dramatic sigh, even as some of the tension left his back. “Alexander, mon chéri, I don’t know how to break this to you but just announcing your surname doesn’t actually solve world-shattering problems.” He rolled his eyes. “Recent history notwithstanding.”

Alec shrugged. “On a scale ranging from a stubbed toe to the universe imploding, I think that _this_ rates a little lower than the earth being overrun with Demons due to an open rift into a Demon realm, don’t you? I remember what happened last time I said that.”

“A dashing Warlock leapt into the fray and disintegrated the horde of demons that were a hairs-breadth from reaching you.” Magnus gave him the stink eye. “I also remember that part particularly well.”

Alec cocked his head as something occurred to him. “Hang on, if you were there to hear Izzy and me talking, then why did you wait until the last moment to act?”

Magnus cleared his throat. “Well. I may have been a little distracted. I’m not sure if you’re aware of this, Alexander, but, when you draw your bow, sometimes your shirt rides up a little. It’s not much, just enough to expose that absolutely delicious part of your abdomen and—”

Alec felt his ears heat up. “You took time out of a potentially world-ending crisis to stare at my stomach?”

Ragnor sighed wearily and shook his head. “Oh, Magnus. I wish I could say that I was surprised to hear this.”

“I feel so attacked right now,” Magnus said mournfully. “My husband and my oldest friend, joining forces to gang up on me. What did I do to deserve this?” He paused for a moment before adding, “You don’t need to answer that.”

Alec was just glad to see Magnus looking more like himself again.

Increased activity had him turning his attention back to Asmodeus. Barely two seconds later, Asmodeus’ eyes flew open. They were golden and demonic, the same eyes that Alec loved seeing on his husband.

Magnus stepped forward slightly, placing himself a little in front of Alec. “Father?”

“Magnus!” Asmodeus sat up. He closed his eyes as he inhaled a deep, shuddery breath. As he breathed out, he opened them again to reveal that they were once more back to the brown that Alec remembered. “Magnus Lightwood-Bane, Alexander Gideon Lightwood-Bane, and Ragnor Fell. I’m not in limbo. This is real.”

Magnus’ magic gathered around his hands, lining them in a dark purple glow. “Yes. Your memories have returned then.” It wasn’t a question.

“Yes. There are things you must know, a danger that awaits. Limbo is not as empty as we had theorised it to be.”

That was surprising. Alec had expected Asmodeus to prevaricate, pretend continued amnesia. Although, dire warnings of a nebulous monster were equally suspect.

Magnus’ eyebrows rose slightly, he squared his shoulders, narrowed his eyes and set his mouth. He looked dangerous, powerful, and devastatingly attractive. Alec tried to concentrate on what was happening, but this day had been one cock-tease after the other. His body was reacting predictably to the sight of his husband looking and sounding like a total badass.

“I’ll take my leave,” Ragnor said quietly. “Magnus, I’ll be outside. Call me if you need me.”

Magnus nodded sharply, not taking his eyes off his father.

Asmodeus slowly arranged his pillow so that he could lean against the headboard. His movements were slow and deliberate, and his hands were shaking slightly. When he looked comfortable, he raised his eyes to Alec. “Before I tell you of my experience in limbo, and of the creature that resides there, I wish to speak to my boy alone.”

“Stop calling me that!” Magnus snarled, moving so that Alec was directly behind him. “Do me the courtesy of addressing me in the way that I wish to be addressed, or this ends now!”

“Very well. Magnus, I wish to speak with you alone.”

Alec shook his head. “That isn’t happening.” Magnus twisted so that they could exchange glances. He looked undecided, so Alec decided on a compromise. “I’ll wait outside the door. The illusion of privacy is the best you’re going to get right now.”

“Very well.”

Alec squeezed Magnus’ hand supportively and took a position that allowed him to see into the room.

Magnus arranged his chair so that he was facing Asmodeus, which allowed Alec to observe both of their profiles. “Right. What is it that you needed to get me alone to say?”

Asmodeus stared at his hands. They were no longer trembling. “When I came to see you after returning your magic, I told you that I took your magic to bring you closer, that I wanted another chance to be your father again.”

“You also said that you wouldn’t take no for an answer, that you would always find your way back to me.”

Asmodeus raised his eyes for a moment and then dropped them again. It was a strangely submissive posture for someone who was accustomed to being deferred to.

Magnus frowned. “You truly think that I would swallow such mendacious falsity? For as long as I’ve known you, you’ve spouted lie after lie. Like a fool, I’ve given you chance after chance. I wanted to believe you. But no more! This time, you made a miscalculation. This time you didn’t wait until I was at my lowest before trying your tricks! What a credulous fool I must have appeared over the centuries! What a hopeful, naïve idiot. But no longer.”

He turned his back and started walking towards the door.

“Magnus.” It was a single word, said with a pleading that Alec had never thought to hear from any Demon, let alone a Prince of Hell.

Magnus halted just short of the door but didn’t turn back around. “What?”

Asmodeus’ had slumped against the headboard. “Do you want to know the secret to making your lies so believable that even those who should know better believe them?”

With back safely turned to his father, Magnus’ inner turmoil was evident on his face, although his posture remained rigid. “Surprise me.”

“The secret is to speak the truth,” Asmodeus sighed. “When I spoke of the pain of losing you, when said I wanted you by my side and spoke of caring for you, those words were true. My intentions were not benign, of course. My motives were entirely selfish, I didn’t care for what you wanted. My only thought was for myself; I see that now. It’s been so long since I…” He trailed off.

Magnus’ face twisted.

“I spent aeons in Edom, you know. After the fall, after I split with my angelic kin—” Asmodeus paused, before starting again. “Higher Demons don’t interact with each other in any meaningful manner. Every moment is spent in a life or death struggle to reach the top. Once you get there, you spend every moment fending off those wishing to attain what you’ve striven for, whose only desire is to take that which you’ve achieved. Trust…” He shook his head. “Trust is a luxury that cannot be afforded. There is only ambition.”

Magnus remained stationary.

Asmodeus must have taken that as encouragement because he kept talking. “That’s the defining truth of the difference between Demons and Angels, you know. Demons are ambition, and have no trust; Angels are trust, but have no ambition. Demons scrape and claw and destroy each other in our quest to the top; Angels stay static, content to remain as they are. Every now and again, an Angel shows signs of ambition. That Angel loses the trust of the others and Falls. Unless they are both lucky and immensely skilled, they’re ripped to pieces almost immediately. The same thing happens to Demons who trust. Annihilation.”

Magnus smoothed out his expression and turned on his heel so that he was once more facing his father. “What are you trying to say?”

Alec came into the room so that he could stand at Magnus’ side and support him.

“My life as a Higher Demon has not been one that I particularly enjoyed. I Fell because I was not content with stagnation. I had no intention of just dying, and so I fought. I wished to avoid the capriciousness of a master, so I learned the moves of the game and grew proficient in playing it. I rose until I was the equal of Lilith, the oldest and most inherently powerful of us. We fought each other to a standstill, and thus it remained for aeons.”

Magnus rolled his eyes. “Is there a point here anywhere?”

Asmodeus sighed. “None of those victories brought me as much joy as I’ve felt these last few weeks in New York. I had come to believe that love and trust were delusions of the weak-minded because trusting another is surely madness. When it benefits them, they will inevitably betray you.”

“If you were so certain of that, then why did you repeatedly try to get me to join you?” Magnus lifted his chin slightly.

“Because I wanted companionship,” Asmodeus said simply. “I was convinced that allowing anyone close was a mistake that could only cause my humiliation and death, and yet…”

Magnus’ face twisted up. “I can’t stay and listen to this right now. Alexander. Would you stay here while I go and check on the others? I’ll send Ragnor back to relieve you.”

“That’s fine.” Alec leaned forward and gave Magnus a quick kiss. “I’ve got a couple of things I want to talk to Asmodeus about in any case. Let Ragnor get a little bit of socialising in, if he wants.

Magnus scoffed. “That old grouch can’t stand socialising. I’ll offer him a fresh bottle and a selection of canapes, and he’ll be happy as a pig in mud until they both run out.”

“Okay.” Alec kissed him again. “Well, tell him he can wait for a bit. Now, go. I’m not sure about Meliorn, but Jace needs to go back, and I imagine Lorenzo is champing at the bit. I’m pretty sure he has a date.” They exchanged a conspiratorial smile. “Ask Simon if he made arrangements to stay before you let him, will you? I know Izzy sorted out her schedule and informed those that she needed to that she was taking leave, but as far as I know, Simon is still rostered on for morning patrol.”

“I’ll take care of it,” Magnus promised. He kissed Alec again, sent a stiff nod towards his father, and left.

Alec waited until he was gone and then took the seat that Magnus had recently vacated. “What is a Higher Demon? I’ve never heard of them before.”

Asmodeus turned his head slowly and studied Alec. Alec felt the pressure of that gaze but didn’t flinch. He’d spent his life being scrutinised regularly by those looking to find fault with him, and now that he knew that Asmodeus was metaphorically de-fanged, he wasn’t nearly as scary as he used to be.

Whatever it was he was looking for, he must have found it. “A Higher Demon, or Devil, is another name for one of the Fallen. I believe those on the earthly plane lump us all together with Greater Demons.”

“Is there that much difference?”

Asmodeus smiled patronisingly. “Of course there is. A Higher Demon is a Fallen Angel, one who has embraced the power of the demonic realms and integrated it into their being. Those of us who rule realms like to call ourselves Princes of Hell, although that is primarily an affectation. Ordinary Demons, the ones classified as Lesser Demons, are natural denizens of the realms who can wield demonic power. Sometimes a Higher Demon will gift a Lesser Demon in service to them with their blood; these become Greater Demons. I would imagine that is where the confusion comes in.”

Music started to filter in from outside. It sounded like a party atmosphere had prevailed.

Alec sat back slightly. “That makes sense. So, it’s like Lesser Demons are Mundanes, Greater Demons are Nephilim, and the Higher Demons are Angels.”

“Simplistic, but close enough.”

“When Warlocks…” Alec groped for a delicate way to say what he was thinking. Then he remembered who he was talking to. “Our understanding is that Warlocks have a Demon father and a human mother. Are Lesser Demons and Greater Demons fathering Warlocks, or is it only the Higher Demons?”

“Lesser Demons are unable to reproduce with anything other than other Lesser Demons,” Asmodeus replied with a glint in his eye. “Greater Demons, by virtue of their blood gift, are more versatile. They are probably responsible for a great majority of the Warlock births. Higher Demons…we procreate rarely, and when we do, it’s often for a purpose. Our progeny tends to be significantly stronger than the Warlocks around them, so it’s not hard to identify them.”

Alec tipped his head back and stared at the ceiling, adding this information to the rest of the stuff he’d learned recently about warlock magic. He blinked as a thought occurred to him. “So, you’re saying that, bringing things back to their most basic level, Magnus is half-Angel?”

Asmodeus smirked. “Not just half-Angel, little Nephilim. Half _Arch Angel_. The only one currently alive.”

Alec blinked and then leaned forward furiously. “He’s that rare, that _valuable_ , and you took his magic away from him and left him helpless?”

Asmodeus rolled his eyes. “I never intended for that situation to be permanent. I assure you that I was keeping an eye on matters; if he had ever been truly on the brink of death, I would have returned his magic to him. Luckily, the lover that he’d sacrificed so much for was at least willing to protect him in return.”

“You couldn’t have just saved him the heartache?”

“Did I not make myself clear earlier? To a Higher Demon, trust, love…these things are weaknesses to be exploited. I truly thought I was doing the right thing by my son by extracting him from that, by hardening his heart.”

Alec snorted. “Right, it was a selfless desire to help him.”

“I believe I have already stated that it was entirely selfish. But putting your own wants and desires first doesn’t necessarily mean that others can’t benefit.” Asmodeus sighed. “Right now I don’t know whether to thank that limbo creature, or curse it.”

Alec frowned. “What can you tell me about this limbo creature?”

Asmodeus waved that away. “That’s a topic best discussed with your entire coterie, I believe. Let us just say that the being that resides there is of some concern. But it’s not an urgent matter, it will keep until everyone can be gathered.

Alec took the time to observe his father-in-law. If he’d been asked to give his opinion, he would have said that Asmodeus had been truthful so far. Of course, only minutes ago, Asmodeus had spelt out the best way to deceive people, so Alec wasn’t sure he could trust his own instincts.

Usually, it wouldn’t matter. Alec would wash his hands of the situation and move on. But Magnus’ involvement complicated things. Alec knew that, despite his harsh words, Magnus still cared deeply for his father and yearned to have a relationship that wasn’t so antagonistic.

Finally, he decided blunt honesty was the only way to go.

He leaned forward and looked Asmodeus in the eye. “You’re aware that we destroyed Lilith. We did that while she was here, in Edom. We can do the same to you, if circumstances dictate. I would prefer not to, because Magnus…” Alec shook his head. “But he’s mourned you once. He can do it again, if necessary. So, this is how it’s going to go. Despite what you’ve done, you’re getting this one chance. If I find out that you intentionally betrayed Magnus again; if I ever think for a moment that this is all a trick? Then I won’t hesitate. Understand?”

Asmodeus stared back. “You’re quick to make promises that you expect your peers to abide by. Will they really be willing to let bygones be bygones?”

Alec raised one eyebrow. “No-one said anything about bygones, Asmodeus. I only said that we wouldn’t kill you until you intentionally betray Magnus. I’ll add an addendum onto that; the way that I understand it, you’re now essentially Magnus’ subject. That means that you’re bound to follow his rules. You break those, on purpose, then I’ll treat that as a betrayal.”

“You didn’t answer my question.”

Alec sat back again, satisfied that he’d gotten his point across. “I can’t speak for the wider Downworld community, but I’m fairly confident that our small circle will follow my lead.” He offered Asmodeus a bland smile. “I’m not known for tolerating threats to my friends and family.”

“I understand.” Asmodeus rested his head on the wall behind him, closing his eyes. “If you wouldn’t mind, I’d like to be alone now.”

Alec got to his feet. “I’m glad that you’re doing better,” he said gently. “I’ll send Ragnor back. If you ask nicely, he might share his brandy.”

He was feeling hopeful as he went out to join the party.

THE END

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's the end for this story.
> 
> I have two more planned to follow this, but they're still in development.
> 
> Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed it :)


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